UN Secretary General Kofi Annan Monday welcomed an announcement that six-nation talks aimed at dismantling North Korea's nuclear weapons programme were to resume next week, his spokesman said. "He hopes that the participants in the talks will use this opportunity to make meaningful progress towards implementing their joint statement of 19 September 2005," Annan's spokesman said in a statement.
The date refers to when North Korea agreed to give up its nuclear ambitions in return for security guarantees, energy benefits and other aid.
"The United Nations Secretariat will remain steadfast in its support for this multilateral diplomatic approach," the brief statement added.
The six-way talks are due to open in Beijing next Monday, host China announced earlier, ending a 13-month hiatus during which Pyongyang tested an atomic bomb.
The announcement offered some hope that the United States and North Korea may compromise to end the long-running dispute, although analysts cautioned against expecting a major breakthrough.
The six-nation talks, which involve the two Koreas, China, the United States, Japan and Russia, have been held on and off since 2003.
Source: Agence France-Presse
