The deputy foreign minister said his discussions with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il had been "very useful and rather constructive".

"But, generally speaking, I think that there is some optimism and the problems can be resolved, providing the preparedness of the sides involved," he said in English on his return to Beijing from a three-day visit to Pyongyang that included six hours of talks with Kim.

Losyukov declined further comment but official Chinese news agency Xinhua quoted an unidentified source as saying Losyukov doubted North Korea could get the United States to agree to a non-aggression treaty that Pyongyang is seeking.

It quoted the source as saying Moscow thought North Korea needed a security guarantee from the United States -- which has repeatedly said that it has no intention of attacking the isolated Communist state.

Losyukov's comments on his arrival in Beijing were one of several indications in recent days of a possible breakthrough in an impasse that began in October when Washington said the North had admitted to a secret nuclear weapons program.

The crisis has intensified in recent weeks as Pyongyang kicked out UN nuclear inspectors, removed the seals from a mothballed reactor and pulled out of a global treaty to help prevent the spread of nuclear arms.

"SIGNIFICANT" TIME NEEDED

Losyukov travelled to North Korea via Beijing, which has regular air services to Pyongyang.

Russia's Itar-Tass, one of the few foreign news agencies with a bureau in Pyongyang, quoted him as saying in the North Korean capital that Moscow was counting on further contacts to hammer out the details of a possible solution to the crisis.

He presented Pyongyang with a set of three proposals that called for the Korean peninsula to be nuclear-free in exchange for guarantees of the North's security and a resumption of aid to the impoverished communist state.

"The Korean side constructively and attentively considered these proposals," Itar-Tass quoted Losyukov as saying.

But resolving the stand-off would require more than one round of talks, he said. A significant amount of time would be needed.

The Russian envoy has been the first foreign diplomat to meet Kim since the crisis began.

He was believed to have given Kim a message from Russian President Vladimir Putin, Itar-Tass said.

Russia, along with China, is one of the few countries to maintain close ties with Pyongyang. Kim has visited Russia twice in recent years and Putin has made one trip to Pyongyang.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Monday that some "interesting elements" had emerged in the search for a diplomatic solution to end North Korea's nuclear programme, without elaborating on those developments.

US officials have cited some progress in easing the nuclear crisis, the latest indication Washington had moved away from its hard line of "no talks" now the stand-off has become a distraction as it prepares for a possible war against Iraq.

(Xinhua News Agency January 21, 2003)