With negotiators still unable to agree on the text of their first joint statement, the fourth round of six-party talks will stretch into its 11th day today, Chinese delegation's spokesperson Qin Gang said yesterday.

"Success is not dependent on the adoption of a joint document," said Qin, adding that the long running negotiations themselves mark progress, with all parties inching ahead toward the denuclearization goal.

He did not disclose details of the reported fourth draft of the joint document proposed by China, which all parties have been discussing since last Saturday.

Acknowledging the existence of different opinions among the six delegations, Qin emphasized that all the negotiators were endeavoring to narrow the differences.

"We've been able to deepen mutual understanding in the talks and there has been no breakdown," he said.

He said he did not know how long the talks would last but indicated they are approaching their final stages.

Russia's chief delegate Alexander Alexeyev, who left Beijing for home last weekend but returned to the Chinese capital yesterday for the talks, said he expected the discussions to continue "about one or two more days," the ITAR-Tass News Agency reported.

Qin stressed that currently the remarkable achievement is that all parties are increasing their understanding of each other's position.

The fourth round of six-party talks, opened last Tuesday in Beijing, is the longest since the talks were launched in 2003 and has been characterized by frequent one-on-one meetings between Washington and Pyongyang, the most critical participants.

The six parties have held 72 bilateral consultations, exceeding the total number bilateral meetings held during the previous three rounds of the talks.

China have held 14 one-on-one meetings with the US and 11 with North Korea, seven with Japan, six with Russia and four with South Korea, said Qin.

The US and North Korean delegates have so far met nine times, with the latest meeting yesterday reportedly arranged by South Korea.

The two sides might still have the chance to meet again, Qin said.

A Chinese source confirmed that an unscheduled joint meeting of chief delegates was held yesterday evening, striving for a breakthrough in negotiations.

In Seoul, South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon said the parties in Beijing were making "last-minute efforts" to resolve differences.

US State Department spokesperson Tom Casey said on Wednesday at a daily briefing in Washington that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had held telephone conversations with her Chinese counterpart Li Zhaoxing, on the progress of the Beijing talks.

China reportedly drafted the latest text of the statement of "principles" for denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula on Tuesday night.

All but North Korea expressed support for it, according to the Yonhap News Agency.

Qin did not confirm the report, saying that all parties need to demonstrate flexibility and make more joint efforts.

Meanwhile, in a one-hour chief negotiators meeting yesterday evening, the six delegations all once again expressed their will to work out a common document, said a South Korean official.

Cho Taiyong, deputy head of the South Korean delegation, said the ongoing talks are now at a "critical" stage, and delegates agreed to continue with the negotiation process in a bid to work out a common document.

Speaking outside the North Korean Embassy late last night, Pyongyang's chief negotiator, Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan, said his country insists on retaining the right to use nuclear power peacefully.

(China Daily August 5, 2005)