Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said Friday in Beijng that the six-party talks would constantly achieve progress with the concerted efforts of parties concerned.

Chinese President Hu Jintao will pay state visits to Britain, Germany, Spain and the Republic of Korea (ROK) from Nov. 8 to 17, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry.

At a press briefing on President Hu's upcoming visits, when asked to make comments on whether the six-party talks would be the topic for Chinese and ROK leaders, Li said the six-party talks on the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, as a problem of great sensitivity and importance, is always discussed by Chinese and foreign leaders on many occasions.

The six-party talks, involving China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the United States, the ROK, Russia and Japan, have been held for four rounds in Beijing since August 2003.

Li said certain progress has been made during the fourth round of six-party talks, which was concluded in August this year, since the joint statement, aimed at resolving the nuclear issue, was signed by all concerned parties.

"We hope that new progress will be made in the future under the framework of the six-party talks, although we know that there would be inevitable difficulties," Li said.

The whole world shares a common desire to see a peaceful and nuclear-weapons-free Korean Peninsula, which is a fundamental drive force to advance the six-party talks to make progress, Li noted.

China, as a host nation for the six-party talks, served more than 4,000 cup of coffee to all delegates during the fourth round of talks, and all negotiators and working staff of the six-party talks are very tired. Although a great cost has been paid, said Li, "We should regard it as an honor and feel proud of making efforts to bring humankind peace," he said.

With the upcoming visit to the ROK to be paid by the Chinese President, the current kimchi problem between China and the ROK has also become a focus for the media.

The ROK announced on Oct. 21 that it had found parasite eggs in Chinese-made kimchi, a spicy food made of fermented cabbage and radish consumed in almost every meal by Koreans. Later on Oct. 31, parasite eggs were also found by China in kimchi and other food products imported from the ROK, and China announced to stop such imports from that date.

When asked to comment on whether the kimchi problem would cause trade disputes between the two sides, the foreign minister said that the problem should be solved as long as the two nations make their practices in compliance with trade rules universal in the international community.

The two sides should solve the problem through discussions with the spirit of flexibility and creativity, Li added.

"I personally love to eat Kimchi," Li said, acknowledging that he was confident that the Kimchi problem would be solved through contact between the two sides.

Source: Xinhua