As the six delegations decided to carry the talks on the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula into the fourth day, a Chinese diplomat said there was hope that a multilateral document would come out.

 

"Never lose hope for resolving the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula," said Liu Jianchao, a member of the Chinese delegation to the second round of the six-party talks, at a news briefing Friday.

 

Lee Soo-Hyuck, who heads the Republic of Korea (ROK) team, echoed Liu's comment, saying that deputy heads of the six delegations are discussing a "common document" for the ongoing talks.

 

The talks involve China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the United States, the ROK, Russia and Japan.

 

"Even if a common document is not be endorsed," Liu said, "it doesn't mean the talks are a failure."

 

"Substantive issues have been touched and all sides reaffirmed that the issues should be resolved peacefully," said Liu, deputy director-general of the Information Office of the Foreign Ministry.

 

In response to the consistent US stance on CVID, a coinage for "complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantling" of DPRK nuclear weapons program, Liu said, China made it clear that the Korean Peninsula should nuclear weapons-free in any form.

 

"The goal of CVID is the realization of a nuclear weapons-free peninsula," Liu said, "but CVID itself is not enough."

 

Other sides also had their own stake, including "security concerns" from the DPRK, Liu said.

 

"All those concerns should be addressed," said Liu, adding that concerted and coordinated steps were needed.

 

He admitted that the alleged DPRK enriched uranium program was discussed in the talks, but he refused to go into details.

 

"The gap is narrowed down and common ground increases," Liu said.

 

He said China appreciated the sincerity, frankness and pragmatism demonstrated at the ongoing talks.

 

"All sides made their own proposal for the setup of working groups and the date of the next round talks," he said.

 

China hoped the six-party talks mechanism would continue, he said, adding that preliminary arrangements for a next meeting would come out after this round of talks.

 

(Xinhua News Agency February 28, 2004)