Okada, Yang agree to cooperate on N. Korea, bilateral issues+

TOKYO, Nov. 20 Kyodo - Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi agreed Thursday to cooperate toward the resumption of the six-party talks aimed at denuclearizing North Korea as the United States and North Korea are moving toward holding direct talks, a Japanese Foreign Ministry official said.

On a bilateral dispute over gas field development in the East China Sea, Okada
reiterated the need to commence negotiations toward concluding an agreement on
a joint project at an early date and Yang responded that China is urgently
considering when to hold working-level talks on the issue.
Yang's four-day visit to Japan from Thursday -- the first since the country saw
a change of government in September -- is also intended to lay the groundwork
for an early visit to Japan by Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, who is seen
as a leading candidate to succeed President Hu Jintao.
Yang told Okada during their talks in Tokyo that his country is ''making
arrangements'' for the visit, but the ministry official refrained from
explaining the specific schedule.
On the North Korean nuclear issue, U.S. President Barack Obama said in Seoul on
Thursday that Stephen Bosworth, special representative for North Korean policy,
will visit Pyongyang on Dec. 8 as part of efforts to bring the country back to
the stalled six-party talks.
Yang said that he welcomed the announcement and also agreed with Okada that the
two countries should ''closely communicate'' toward denuclearizing the Korean
Peninsula, the ministry official said.
But it is uncertain if the visit will ensure the resumption of the talks, with
North Korea remaining unclear on its commitment toward denuclearization despite
its eagerness to hold direct talks with the United States.
In April, North Korea declared its withdrawal from the multilateral talks
involving the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the United States. Pyongyang
added to the tension by conducting its second nuclear test in May, a move which
resulted in further U.N. sanctions on the country.
Among issues of bilateral concern, Okada and Yang also touched on the issue of
tainted Chinese-made frozen dumplings that made people ill in Japan, and agreed
to expedite their efforts to create a new framework to ensure food safety.
The pesticide-tainted dumplings caused 10 people to fall ill in Japan from
December 2007 to January 2008, sparking anxiety across the country over
products imported from China.
The Japanese Foreign Ministry announced the same day the names of experts who
will form a committee to discuss issues ranging from politics to scientific
technology for the promotion of Japan-China friendship in the 21st century.
Taizo Nishimuro, chairman of Tokyo Stock Exchange Group Inc., will be the chair
of the Japanese side, and former Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan will be
the chair of the Chinese side.
Such a committee framework was originally launched in 1984, according to the
ministry.
Yang will also meet Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama on Friday and visit
Kyoto on Saturday and Sunday, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
==Kyodo
2009-11-20 00:29:56