"Vice Foreign Minister Kang arrived in China on Saturday and is discussing the restart of the six-party talks with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei," a diplomatic source in Beijing said. "I understand that in ongoing discussions, the two have agreed in principle to restart the six-party talks."

As the man responsible for North Korea's nuclear diplomacy, Kang is a major player in his country's foreign policy and was party to Chinese Communist Party official Wang Jiarui's meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il when Wang visited Pyongyang in February.

Another source in Beijing said Kang's visit came on North Korea's own initiative as opposed to outside pressure "in a bid to gain face for returning to the six-party talks." He said the way for negotiations to resume was clear.

Diplomats say Kang's visit, coming immediately after North Korean Premier Park Bong-ju visited China to confirm the position of other parties in the talks, shows Pyongyang is serious about restarting the talks. Pyongyang has been feeling the pressure from a flurry of cross-visits among participants, including U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's tour of South Korea, China and Japan, with rumors circulating that Washington was losing patience and setting a June deadline for resumption of the talks.

But one source said, "Even if we get past the worst and the six-party talks restart, ultimately we cannot be optimistic" since North Korea is now saying the six-party talks should be mutual nuclear disarmament negotiations.

Meanwhile, North Korean sources say the way is now clear for a visit to Pyongyang by Chinese President Hu Jintao in the first half of the year.

(englishnews@chosun.com )