Seoul, Sept 03: South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun met with Chinese parliamentary leader Wu Bangguo today to discuss the standoff over North Korea's suspected development of nuclear weapons. Wu's delegation included Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who represented China in last week's six-nation talks aimed at defusing tension with Pyongyang.
Roh urged Beijing to continue supporting efforts to resolve the nuclear dispute peacefully, and Wu promised close cooperation with Seoul over the issue, South Korea's presidential office said. Beijing hosted the talks, which involved the United States, China, Japan, Russia and the two Koreas.
China said after the meeting that all six countries agreed to continue to talk. But the North angrily dismissed the need for more talks, and threatened to strengthen its "nuclear deterrent force". North Korea, however, said yesterday that it was willing to resolve the nuclear dispute "through dialogue," while reiterating its threat to increase nuclear capabilities. Bureau Report