6-party talks open, host China urges flexibility
By Hu Xiao and Qin Jize (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-07-26 06:08

The Japanese Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Sasae and Hill reaffirmed they would work together to achieve "substantive progress" during the upcoming six-way talks.

The Japanese side has said it will use the talks as an opportunity to tackle the issue of the abduction of Japanese citizens by the DPRK.

Piao Jianyi, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the chance of making substantive progress largely depend on the sincerity and flexibility of Pyongyang and Washington.

He said Pyongyang's commitment to abandoning nuclear weapons and Washington's changing of its "hostile policy" towards the DPRK were key.