Chinese senior diplomat Wang Yi said in Beijing Saturday that
the disputes among all parties participating in the third round of
six-party talks on the nuclear issue in the Korean Peninsula were
narrowed.
Wang, chairman of the third round of six-party talks, Chinese
delegation head and vice foreign minister, made the remarks at a
press conference after this round of talks concluded.
The nuclear issue faced two difficulties currently: one is the
scope and measures of nuclear abandonment, the other is the scope
of corresponding measures of the nuclear freeze, Wang said.
All parties, especially the Democratic People's Republic of
Korea (DPRK) and the United States, had serious differences on
these problems, he said, noting that the disputes were narrowed in
this round of the six-party talks.
The plans tabled by the United States and the Democratic
People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) shared "common elements" with
many positive ideas worthy serious study.
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) expressed its
willingness to give up all nuclear weapon-related programs in a
transparent way, and stressed that the freezing of the nuclear
programs was the first step for the abandonment of the nuclear
programs and it would accept inspection, Wang Yi said. The DPRK
also offered specific plans on launching the freezing program for
the first time.
The United States reiterated it would not pursue a hostile
policy toward the DPRK and offered, for the first time,
comprehensive proposals for resolving the nuclear issue in an
all-round way.
It showed attitudes of the two sides began to go closer, Wang
said.
China, Russia, the Republic of Korea and Japan all agreed to
take measures simultaneously to solve the concerns of the DPRK, and
the United States also expressed its willingness to study DPRK's
requirements, Wang said.
"The proposals and plans are the results achieved from the
efforts of all relevant parties since the talks started a year ago,
and they also reflect the positive political will of all parties to
push forward the peaceful talks," he said.
"The other side of difficulty is hope, and the process to solve
difficulties is the process to realize hopes," said Wang. "There is
no difficulty that cannot be solved, no hopes cannot be realized,
if we persevere in our talks."
All the six parties agreed in principle to convene in Beijing
for the fourth round of talks before the end of September this
year
Goal of denuclearization irreversible
The goal of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula is
irreversible, nor is the process of peace talks or the historical
trend on the peninsula toward peace and stability, said Wang
Yi.
This round of talks is convened at a time when the peace talks
entered the critical phase, and as the host nation China is happy
for the progress achieved, Wang said, adding the hard-won progress
has not only consolidated the achievements made so far, but paved
the way for future talks, and deserves cherish.
He said this round of talks is featured with calm atmosphere,
substantial contents and in-depth discussions. It is positive and
pragmatic and reflects the spirits of mutual respect, equality and
consultations. While putting forward their own solution proposals,
the parties also showed respect for each other's plans.
"Meanwhile, we know clearly that the nuclear issue is highly
complicated and there is still a serious lack of mutual trust
between relevant sides. The basis of the talks is not solid enough,
and there are still a number of differences and even opposing ideas
on the scope and means of denuclearization, on nuclear freeze and
corresponding measures," Wang said.
He said as the substantial discussions proceed further, new
difficulties will inevitably crop up. "We have been fully aware of
that," he said.
Six parties welcome DPRK's commitment
At the press
conference, Wang said that during the third round of talks, the six
parties reached consensus on the first phase of the
denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula, and all agreed that the
nuclear freeze and its corresponding measures were the first phase
of the denuclearizaion process.
The six parties expressed welcome and made positive assessment
at varying degrees on the commitment of the DPRK, he said.
The six parties agreed that the working group should convene at
an early date to discuss specifically on the scope, duration and
verification as well as corresponding measures in the process of
denuclearization.
The discussion will help deepen talks on substantive matters and
fundamentally promote the denuclearization process, he said.
China's role in six-party talks
China's role in the six-party talks is to promote the process of
peaceful talks, Wang Yi said.
China has put out the general goal, direction and way to
peacefully solve the issue, which have been agreed by the other
five sides and the international community. With the efforts of
China, the framework of three-party talks and six-party talks have
been formed and become a continuous process, Wang said.
In addition, China, as host of the talks, played a role of
mediating, which has gained approval of all sides.
However, China is not the dominating factor on the issue and the
key was not in the hand of China, Wang said, adding that China has
always been well aware of this and managed to balance its position
and role.
As to this round of talks, Wang said China has also done three
things. First, China has urged the other sides, especially the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the United States to
provide their concrete plans. Second, China suggested that all
sides should respect each other and their plans. Third, China
mediated actively and put forward a middle course when the talks
came to a deadlock, Wang said.
(Xinhua News Agency June 26, 2004)