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14:10 GMT
TOKYO, Aug 26 (KUNA) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il said Friday that
his country is ready to resume the six-party talks on dismantling its nuclear
programs without preconditions, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported.
Kim made the remarks while meeting with Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo
during his visit to northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.
North Korea "adheres to the goal of denuclearization on the Korean
Peninsula and is ready to fully implement the Sept. 19 joint statement along
with all sides for maintaining and promoting peace and stability on the Korean
Peninsula," Kim was quoted as telling Dai. Launched in 2003, the six-party
talks involve the two Koreas, the US, China, Japan and Russia. The joint
statement was signed on Sept. 19, 2005, in which Pyongyang promised to abandon
all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs.
The multinational talks have been stalled since December 2008 after the
North stormed out. South Korea, the US and Japan North Korea insists Norht
Korea must halt its nuclear activities before stalled six-party talks reopen.
Kim arrived in northeast China on Thursday after his Russian tour. (end)
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KUNA 261710 Aug 11NNNN