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Chinese special representative for Korean Peninsula affairs

By Park Hyun, Washington correspondent

The Chinese and US senior representatives to the six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear issue met in Washington on Oct. 28 to discuss resuming the talks.

According to US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki, Chinese special representative for Korean Peninsula affairs Wu Dawei met in Washington with special representative Glyn Davies, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs Daniel Russell, and other senior officials in the department to hold “productive” discussions on North Korea-related issues.

Psaki also said that Wu planned to meet Davies again on Oct. 29, as well as Undersecretary for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman and White House National Security Council senior Asian affairs director Evan Medeiros.

The US and Chinese governments agree on the fundamental importance of North Korean denuclearization, Psaki said, adding that Wu’s visit was part of a series of senior-level meetings to discuss peaceful ways of achieving the shared goal of a denuclearized North Korea.

Wu has been working during his visit to flesh out the road map the two countries are developing for a resumption of the six-party talks. Early last month, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged US President Barack Obama to move quickly to resume the talks. Late last month, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met twice in New York with US Secretary of State John Kerry to trade views on the issue.

With another US visit planned for early next week by South Korea’s senior delegate to the six-party talks, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs Cho Tae-young, observers are now watching to see if the move to resume the talks gathers further momentum.

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