South Korea and China's chief negotiators for the six-party talks on denuclearizing North Korea agreed Friday to closely collaborate in punishing North Korea for its recent nuclear test, the Foreign Ministry said.
In their telephone conversation earlier in the day, Hwang Joon-kook, special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, and his Chinese counterpart Wu Dawei discussed how they will act together in the aftermath of what the North claimed was a successful hydrogen bomb test on Wednesday.
"(China) will communicate and cooperate closely with South Korea when the United Nations Security Council takes suitable action against the latest situation," Wu was quoted as having said in the phone conversation which lasted for 45 minutes.
The remark was made in reaction to Hwang's urge for "close South Korea-China cooperation in taking differentiated, harsh action" in UNSC, according to the ministry.
China is "firmly opposed to North Korea's fourth nuclear test" and it "will never accept North Korea as a nuclear-possessing country," Wu also said during the conversation, pledging that he will continue with the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.
China "will continue its efforts to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue in the frame of the six-party talks," he also stressed.
The officials, both representing their countries in the multilateral denuclearization forum, also discussed bilateral ties during the telephone conference, the first of its kind between Hwang and Wu since the Wednesday nuclear test. (Yonhap)
