Top negotiators for the six-party talks on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue may meet next week, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Losyukov said on Wednesday.
Kim Jong Il, leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Tuesday told Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi that there have been some "signs of easing" on the peninsula and all parties concerned should take initial actions following a February agreement.
At the six-party talks in February, Pyongyang pledged to shut down the Yongbyon reactor with the ultimate goal of abandonment, and invite the inspectors of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to return to DPRK for verification in Yongbyon.
Pyongyang has, however, insisted to take back its 25-million U.S. dollars assets frozen in a Macao-based bank before it shut down the Yongbyon nuclear reactor. Those funds were frozen after the United States blacklisted the bank but have been transferred to a DPRK bank last week.
IAEA has worked out an arrangement for the verification to shutdown and seal the Yongbyon nuclear establishments after a five-day visit paid by a working-level delegation to DPRK last week.
"On the whole, the raising of the question of excluding anyone from the six-sided talks has not helped achieve progress at the talks," Itar-Tass quoted Losyukov as saying, without elaborating where the meeting will be held.
The multinational talks involves China, DPRK, the United States, Republic of Korea, Russia and Japan.
