Sept. 8 (Bloomberg) — Negotiations aimed at dismantling North Korea’s nuclear weapons programs will resume Sept. 13 in Beijing, China Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said today at a regular briefing in Beijing.
“We hope these talks can push us forward on this issue,” Qin said.
South Korea, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia, are offering North Korea food and economic aid and security guarantees in return for the abolition of its nuclear program. Delegates failed to reach an agreement in 13 days of talks that ended on Aug. 7.
This round of talks, like the last, won’t have a time limit, Qin said.
“All sides need to work toward the goal of a non-nuclear Korean Peninsula,” he said. “This requires adjusting the schedule as progress is made. We see the six-party talks as a process. We cannot resolve everything in just a few rounds.”
North Korea delayed returning to Beijing as scheduled on the week of Aug. 29, citing U.S.-South Korean annual military exercises. The Kim Jong Il regime said earlier it would return to the talks during the week of Sept. 12.
Talks stalled last month after North Korea insisted on retaining a peaceful nuclear program to produce power. U.S. officials are concerned North Korea may convert a civilian nuclear program to military use and build nuclear weapons. North Korea said on Feb. 10 it had nuclear weapons and planned to build more.
