N. Korea leader pledges denuclearization of Korean Peninsula
Date: 09/02/2010      Time: 09:30:00 AM
 
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il pledged to realize "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," China's state-owned Xinhua News Agency reported Tuesday in a short dispatch from Pyongyang. During his meeting with Chinese Communist Party international affairs chief Wang Jiarui on Monday, Kim reiterated "the country's persistent stance to realize the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," Xinhua said. "The sincerity of relevant parties to resume the six-party denuclearization talks is very important," Kim was quoted as telling Wang. China, the closest ally of North Korea, is chair of the six-party denuclearization talks involving the two Koreas, Japan, Russia and the US. Pyongyang pulled out of the multilateral talks in April last year after the UN Security Council condemned its long-range rocket launch in the same month. Separately, North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Wang conveyed to Kim a verbal personal message from Chinese President Hu Jintao. The KCNA did not elaborate on its content, but said Kim "expressed gratitude for the message and asked Wang to convey his regards to Hu." Wang arrived in the North Korean capital on Saturday for "a goodwill visit. "