Kim Gye-gwan, head of the North Korean delegation to the six-party talks, said on Tuesday North Korea will repeat its standpoints on peaceful nuclear activity, but will "take flexibility when necessary" in the second phase of the fourth round of the six-party talks.

 

"North Korea has right on peaceful nuclear activity. This right is neither awarded nor needs to be approved by others," Kim told Xinhua at Pyongyang Sun-an Airport before traveling to Beijing to attend the six-party talks concerning the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula.

 

"We have this right, and the more important thing is that we should use this right," Kim stressed, adding that "if US tries to set obstacle to the North Korea's using this right, we can utterly not accept that."

 

Kim reiterated the North Korea's ultimate aim of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula through dialogue and negotiation.

 

"North Korea will attend the talks by sincere attitude and take flexibility when necessary," said Kim who took a Korea Airlines flight to Beijing along with his delegation.

 

The first phase of the fourth round of the six-party talks, starting from July 26, recessed on August 7.

 

North Korea announced on August 29 that it would postpone the second phase of the talks originally scheduled for the same day to mid-September because US began the large-scale war exercises "Ulji Focus Lens-05" with South Korea and appointed a "presidential envoy for the human rights issue of North Korea."

 

(Xinhua News Agency September 13, 2005)