Kim Jong-Il expresses regret about nuclear test

SOUTH KOREA: North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il has expressed regret about his country's nuclear test and willingness to return to disarmament talks if the US eases the pressure, a South Korean newspaper reported Friday.

Chosun Ilbo, quoting an unidentified diplomatic source in China, said Kim made the remarks to a high-level Chinese delegation visiting Pyongyang this week.

"Chairman Kim conveyed his sorry feelings about the nuclear test," Chosun, the largest-circulation paper in South Korea, quoted the source as saying.

"If the United States makes concessions to some degree, so will we, be it either at the bilateral level or the six-party talks," Kim was quoted as saying when he met the delegation led by State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan on Thursday.

China said Tang, President Hu Jintao's special envoy, had delivered an important message from Hu to Kim during a "significant" mission.

It was the first time Kim is known to have met any foreigner since the October 9 nuclear test, which sparked international condemnation and sanctions against the impoverished communist state.

The United States and other nations have been pushing China, the North's only remaining major ally, to use its influence to curtail Kim's nuclear ambitions.

According to a South Korean official, the North gave China only about 20 minutes' advance notice of the test.

Beijing - which had invested much diplomatic capital hosting six-nation disarmament talks involving the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States - reacted angrily and denounced the test as "brazen."

Meanwhile US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged China Friday to fully implement the UN resolution against North Korea, particularly the requirement to inspect cargo from the nuclear-armed state.

In a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing in Beijing, Rice said she discussed how Beijing should abide by the Council's resolution that was approved on Saturday to punish North Korea for its October 9 atomic test.

"The minister and I have talked about the importance of full implementaion of resolution 1718 so that we can make certain there is not a transited trade in dangerous illegal materials concerning the nuclear weapons program of the DPRK (North Korea)," Rice said.

But China, the North's closest ally, has given mixed signals about how closely it intends to inspect North Korean cargo.

Li told reporters after the meeting that China intended to meet its obligations under the UN sanctions package. "As a member state of the UN and permanent member of the Security Council, China as always will continue to implement our relevant international obligations," Li said.

"China has an excellent track record of playing a constructive role in the international community and in honoring all of our commitments. I think China will continue to maintain our excellent track record on this issue."

Li also called for calm on all sides in dealing with the North Korean nuclear crisis.

"We hope that all the relevant parties will maintain cool-headedness, adopt a prudent and responsible approach and adhere to dialogue and the peaceful resolution as the general direction of our efforts," Li told reporters.

Rice also again urged North Korea to return unconditionally to six-party talks on ending its nuclear program, which Kim Jong-Il's regime has boycotted since November last year.

"The DPRK should return to these talks without conditions," Rice said. Rice, who arrived in Beijing on Friday for the third leg of a four-nation tour to discuss the North Korean nuclear crisis, was due to hold talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao later in the day.

Seoul, Beijing, Friday, AFP