N Korea 'willing' to talk on nuclear issues: Chinese military official

Want China Times, Xinhua 2013-08-22

Guan Youfei, China's director of the Foreign Affairs Office under the
Ministry of National Defense. (Photo/Xinhua)

A window has emerged to open talks on the Korean peninsula nuclear issue, a senior official with the Chinese military said Tuesday.

Guan Youfei, director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the Ministry of National Defense of China, made the remarks at a news briefing held in Washington DC, stressing there are signs of eased tensions in the Peninsula, and leaders of North Korea have voiced willingness to conduct multilateral talks.

According to Guan, who accompanied Chinese minister of National Defense Chang Wanquan for a visit to the United States from Aug. 16-20, the Korean peninsula nuclear issue was one of the topics discussed by minister Chang and his US hosts.

Guan said Chang discussed the nuclear issue with his US counterpart Chuck Hagel and Susan Rice, President Barack Obama's national security adviser, on Monday. Chang told the US side that China has always opposed nuclearization of the Korean peninsula, and insists on preserving peace and stability there.

China also believes the issue can only be solved through active negotiations and engagement, saying pressure and sanctions won't help in solving the problem and urging the US side to show flexibility and engage the DPRK, and not to let the opportunity to slip away.

The US side has voiced willingness to work with the Chinese side to achieve a swift resolution of the issue, according to Guan.