N. Korean leader calls for early resumption of six-party talks: Xinhua

(ATTN: UPDATES with context, background, material from NK leader-Beijing departure in paras 4-8, 15-16, last 8 paras; ADDS photo) SEOUL/BEIJING, May 26 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il called for an early resumption of the long-stalled six-party nuclear disarmament talks when he met with Chinese President Hu Jintao during his latest trip to the neighboring ally, Beijing's Xinhua News agency said Thursday. But Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) gave a toned-down account, saying that Kim and Hu recognized that peaceful resolution of the nuclear standoff through dialogue, including the resumption of the six-party talks, and the "elimination of obstructive elements" conform to the overall interests in the region. KCNA did not elaborate on what the "obstructive elements" mean. Kim's remark on the nuclear talks appeared little different from what he has previously said. Kim has called for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, saying it was a "dying wish" of his late father and national founder Kim Il-sung. But he has actually refused to give up the nuclear programs and rather sought to bolster them, including seeking uranium enrichment, which could provide Pyongyang with a second way of building atomic bombs after the existing plutonium-based program. It appeared that Xinhua and KCNA coordinated the timing of their dispatches that marked the first time the sides have confirmed Kim's secretive, weeklong trip to China, the North's last-remaining major ally that has propped up the impoverished regime with aid and diplomatic support. The two sides typically reveal details of Kim's Chinese trips only after he returns home. Thursday's dispatches marked the first time the two countries have confirmed Kim's trip before the reclusive leader crossed into the North. Kim's special train left Beijing around 2:20 p.m. local time and was expected to cross the border early Friday. "Kim said the DPRK hopes to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula, sticks to the objective of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and believes that the six-party talks should be resumed at an early date," Xinhua said, referring to the North by the acronym of its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. "Kim said the DPRK, as always, sincerely hopes relations between the DPRK and the Republic of Korea (ROK) could be improved," Xinhua said. ROK refers to South Korea, whose official name is the Republic of Korea. KCNA said that Kim and Hu recognized that the "adherence to the goal of denuclearization on the whole Korean Peninsula, peaceful settlement of the issue through dialogue, including the resumption of the six-party talks, and the elimination of obstructive elements conform to the overall interests of Northeast Asia." They "shared views on making good understanding and coordination," it said. KCNA made no mention of relations with South Korea. The nuclear talks, involving the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the U.S., have been stalled since the last session in December 2008 due to North Korea's boycott and tensions over the communist nation's two deadly attacks on the South last year. Since early this year, Pyongyang has called for an unconditional resumption of the nuclear talks, a typical North Korean tactic of stoking tensions and then trying to return to the negotiating table to extract concessions. But South Korea and the U.S. have urged Pyongyang to first take concrete steps demonstrating its denuclearization commitment before resuming the nuclear talks. Seoul has also demanded the North first apologize for last year's attacks that claimed the lives of 50 South Koreans. According to Xinhua, Hu stressed the importance of peace and stability as well as denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, urging related parties to "remain clam and restrained, show flexibility, remove obstacles, improve relations and make positive efforts to ultimately accomplish peace, stability and development on the peninsula." Kim told Hu that North Korea "is now concentrating its attention and resources on economic development, and it is in great need of a stable neighboring environment," Xinhua said, a comment seen as a plea for Chinese help in reviving the North's broken economy. It was Kim's third trip to China in about a year. The latest trip, which began Friday last week, came as Kim has been grooming his youngest son, Jong-un, as his successor. Last year, the heir-apparent was given top posts at the ruling Workers' Party as well as the title of a four-star general. KCNA said that Hu called for advancing the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries, saying China's government and party will "creditably discharge the historic responsibility for steadfastly carrying forward the baton of the traditional Sino-DPRK friendship." The remark suggests that China may have given its blessing to Kim's succession plan. Many had previously believed that the junior Kim would visit China with or without his father, noting that he reportedly has a standing invitation to make a trip. But according to Xinhua, the junior Kim was not on an official list of the North's entourage. Kim's meeting with Hu, the third in just more than a year, illustrates the significance the two neighbors attach to each other, once described as being as close as "lips and teeth." China is the North's last remaining ally, key economic benefactor and diplomatic supporter. Meanwhile, North Korea serves as China's strategic buffer zone as it keeps 28,500 U.S. troops at bay in South Korea. China has repeatedly coaxed its impoverished ally to embrace the reform that lifted millions of Chinese out of poverty and helped Beijing's rise to becoming the world's second-largest economy. The North remains one of the poorest countries in the world, and its economy is unlikely to get better anytime soon as it is under U.N. sanctions over its nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009. Kim visited an automaker, IT companies, a solar energy company and a large discount store as well as a top electronics company as he traveled across China's northeastern region and prosperous eastern areas before reaching Beijing. It remains to be seen whether Kim's trips to economic facilities in China will translate into any specific gestures toward economic reforms. "Kim will make ostensible efforts toward reforms for the sake of drawing aid and investment from China," said Han Ki-bum, a researcher at the state-run Korean Institute for National Reunification. North Korea's previous experiments with limited reforms have backfired, deepening the country's economic woes with no relief in sight.