China has appointed an ambassador in charge of the nuclear issue in the Korean Peninsula, adding to Beijing's efforts to defuse the nuclear weapons crisis in the area.  

Ambassador Ning Fukui is a long-time Foreign Ministry official who is familiar with the situation on the Korean Peninsula, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao.

"He will contact, consult and coordinate with all parties extensively," Liu said at a regular briefing Thursday. "We hope that with the efforts of all parties concerned the second round of talks on the nuclear issue can be held as soon as possible.''

According to the spokesman, Ning was deputy director of the Department of Asian Affairs of the Foreign Ministry from July 1995 to April 2000.

During the four-party talks in Geneva 1999 which involved the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Republic of Korea, China and the United States, Ning was deputy head of the Chinese delegation.

Prior to this appointment, Ning was the Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia.

Beijing hosted the first round of six-party talks in August.

Though the talks ended without much progress, participants hoped to meet again by the year's end.

Earlier this week, US officials said that date will not be met and the talks may be held early next year.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said preparation for the second round of talks is ongoing and it is premature to set a specific date at present.

Asked to comment on European lawmakers' rejecting a proposal by France and Germany to lift a ban on arms sales to China, Liu said China hopes the European Union (EU) will lift the embargo, saying the embargo is not consistent with a trend towards improving relations between China and Europe.

Liu said: "We think the EU's ban on arms sales to China is not in line with the sound momentum in the development of Sino-European relations. We hope the EU can adopt measures to remove the embargo as early as possible."

Also at yesterday's news conference, Liu said the Chinese central government is concerned about the first severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) case reported in Taiwan since the last outbreak and hopes the patient will recover soon.

Liu said the central government, attaching great importance to Taiwan people's health and well-being, has been trying to promote cross-Straits medical exchanges and cooperation.

Answering a question about Taiwan's attempt to participate in the World Health Organization (WHO), Liu reiterated China's stance on this issue and said Taiwan has easy access to WHO information currently. 

(Sources including China Daily and Xinhua News Agency, December 19, 2003)