China says it expects a trilateral meeting in Washington next week to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula, and promote dialogue rather than inflame the situation. The meeting will include foreign ministers from the US, Japan and South Korea.

China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu says parties concerned should seriously consider China's proposal of holding emergency consultations among the heads of delegations to the six-party talks. She adds the proposal should be considered from the perspective of safeguarding peace and stability of North East Asia and promoting the de-nuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. She said Russia had expressed support for China's call for emergency consultations. Jiang also refuted criticism of China's efforts for the consultations.

Jiang Yu said, "While it seems justified for someone to wield weapons, China, as host of the six-party talks, received criticism for proposing the consultations. Is it fair? I reiterate that the only way to resolve the Korean Peninsula issue is through dialogue and negotiation."