A senior official with the US delegation to the six-party talks said in Beijing Wednesday that it is time to solve the Korean Peninsular nuclear issue and the United States has offered a new proposal.

The official said at the first day of the four-day talks that the US delegation made a seven-page proposal to end the disputes over the nuclear issue.

It is the first formal proposal that the United States has made towards solving the nuclear issue, and "We did think it is now a good time to offer the proposal," said the official, noting that it's time to completely solve the issue.

In the proposal, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) would be given a three-month preparatory period for dismantlement and removal of nuclear facilities, and the DPRK is also asked to offer the US side a listing of nuclear activities at various time.

The proposal also set ways to solve the security concerns of the DPRK, said the US official, adding that under the proposal, issues like lifting sanctions over the DPRK and dealing with its energy needs would be covered.

The official said the proposal is a "complex" one, because it is a large program that involves a lot of things with the DPRK and other parties.

It is said that the DPRK delegation has acquired a text of the US proposal for further discussion.

"We do hope the DPRK to seriously look at what we have in mind, and we don't want them to response us right now, " said the US official, noting that the US side is patient and determined to solve the problem.

According to the official, the US delegation had meetings with delegations from China, Russia, Japan and the Republic of Korea respectively shortly before the six-party talks opened here Wednesday afternoon.

(Xinhua News Agency June 24, 2004)