It has been confirmed that Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Wu Dawei put forward the idea of holding the Six-Party Talks once a month during his late August visit to South Korea, Japan and the U.S.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Kim Young Sun revealed in a press briefing today, “There was an exchange of ideas between the related countries whereby were the Six-Party Talks to be resumed, there would be the need to regularize the Six-Party Talks as a way to reinforce the system.”
Kim explained, “Until now, officials in charge of the Six-Party Talks have exchanged views on visits to the related countries.”
However, he reiterated that a sincere improvement to North Korea’s attitude remains a precondition to any resumption of the Six-Party Talks as far as South Korea is concerned, saying, “Regularizing the Six-Party Talks is something which can occur after the resumption of the Six-Party Talks, and first and foremost North Korea needs to show a sincere intention to denuclearize through specific actions and earn faith from other countries and the international community.”
Chinese Deputy Minister Wu visited South Korea on August 29th following a visit to Pyongyang a week before to discuss the issue of resuming the Six-Party Talks. At the time, the South Korean administration welcomed his suggestion but reiterated its belief that real changes must come first.
