SEOUL, Feb. 21 (UPI) -- South Korea has welcomed reports that North Korea was ready to return to nuclear talks, but dismissed it as "nothing new."
According to the North's official Korean Central News Agency, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il told visiting Chinese special envoy Wang Jiarui that Pyongyang will "go to the negotiating table anytime if there are mature conditions for the six-party talks thanks to the concerted efforts of the parties concerned in the future."
It is first official statement from the North since it declared itself a nuclear power and announced a boycott of future six-party talks on its nuclear programs last week.
"It is nothing new and is not different from what they have so far said," South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon told reporters.
National security adviser Kwon Chin-ho also said he could not predict the future of the six-party talks with Kim's remarks alone.
But they said the North Korean leader's remarks are another indication that its nuclear state declaration is aimed at raising its bargaining leverage in future talks.
