State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan, as a special envoy of President Hu Jintao, left Pyongyang for home Thursday after wrapping up a three-day visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).  

Tang's visit, made at an important time when the six-party talks are about to resume, is widely considered as another effort of the Chinese government to promote the process of the talks, after Wang Jiarui, head of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, paid a visit to Pyongyang in February after the DPRK declared an indefinite suspension of its participation in the talks.

During his visit starting on Tuesday, Tang met with DPRK's Premier Pak Bong-ju, Foreign Minister Paek Nam-sun, and Kim Yong-nam, president of the presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly of the DPRK.

DPRK top leader Kim Jong-il also held talks with Tang on Wednesday afternoon.

Kim reaffirmed to Tang that the denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula is the DPRK's goal and he hoped that the six-party talks would be an important platform for the realization of the denuclearization.

"The DPRK side is expecting that the next round of the talks would be held on time and make positive progress," Kim said.

During the talks, Tang expressed China's readiness to join hands with relevant countries including the DPRK to promote a new round of talks on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, and hoped the talks would yield positive results.

The fourth round of the six-party talks is scheduled to resume in the last week of July after a 13-month hiatus.

Before his departure on Thursday, Tang, a former foreign minister, visited Daean Friendship Glass Factory, which was built with the help of the Chinese government.

(Xinhua News Agency July 15, 2005)