Korean envoys hold nuclear talks in Beijing

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The chief nuclear envoys for North and South Korea met in Beijing to try to revive international nuclear disarmament talks on Wednesday, with little hope of any early breakthroughs.

The one-day meeting at a private members' club in the centre of the Chinese capital is the second round of talks between the South's Wi Sung-Lac and his North Korean counterpart Ri Yong-Ho in two months.

They aim to pave the way for a resumption of full six-party negotiations on the North's nuclear disarmament, a process which began back in 2003 and groups the two Koreas, China, the United States, Japan and Russia.

North Korea formally abandoned the six-nation forum in April 2009, a month before staging a second nuclear test which brought worldwide condemnation and fresh United Nations sanctions.

Now all sides say they want to start talking again, especially after Pyongyang's disclosure last November of a uranium enrichment programme which could give it a second way to make atomic weapons.

In July Wi and Ri held surprise talks on the Indonesian island of Bali, which were followed by a US-North Korean meeting in New York.

But while the North wants six-party talks without preconditions, South Korea and the United States say it must show seriousness about giving up its nuclear arsenal in return for economic, diplomatic and security benefits.

South Korea's Yonhap news agency said Wi would demand that North Korea stop its uranium enrichment programme before the negotiations could resume, citing a senior Seoul diplomat.

But the North has repeatedly said it wants an unconditional resumption of the six-party forum and last month, Seoul's negotiator said it was "too ambitious" to expect the talks to restart this autumn.

"We cannot go to six-party talks when (the North's) nuclear programmes are up and running," Wi told reporters at that time.

The envoys broke for lunch at midday without speaking to reporters gathered at the club in Beijing.