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North Korea nuclear talks to start July 26 - daily

Posted on: Sunday, 17 July 2005, 19:18 CDT

SEOUL (Reuters) - Stalled six-party talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear weapons programs will begin on July 26 in Beijing, but no date has been set for when the discussions will end, a South Korean daily reported on Monday.

North Korea said on July 9 it would return to the talks with China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States, but the reclusive country did not given an exact date.

Host China has asked the parties to gather in Beijing for talks to start on July 26, the Dong-A Ilbo newspaper quoted an unnamed government source as saying, and South Korea and other countries had agreed.

The parties are aiming for specific results at the meeting, which will be the fourth round of the six-party talks, so they have yet to decide on a closing date, the official reportedly said.

The three previous rounds of talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions lasted only four days and went little beyond each country presenting its position.

Last week the top negotiators from Japan, South Korea and the United States met in Seoul and said they would like to see the fourth round of talks extended beyond four-days.

They also wanted to change the format to have more time for hard bargaining and less for reading position papers.

South Korean officials were not immediately available for comment on the newspaper report.

Source: REUTERS

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