Beijing yesterday praised outgoing US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick for building ties between the nations during his six years in the Bush administration.

"During his term, Zoellick was devoted to the development of China-US relations," said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu.

"He contributed to the growing trust between China and the United States. China appreciated his role."

Speaking at a regular press briefing the spokeswoman expressed the hope that the US strategist on China will continue to play an active role in advancing bilateral ties and mutually beneficial co-operation in his new post.

Zoellick, 52, has served as the State Department's second in command. He handed in his resignation on Monday and reportedly will join investment house Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

He was considered one of the highest profile Bush administration figures in economic policy and was a key player in Sino-US relations.

Last year, Zoellick held two rounds of China-US strategic dialogues with his Chinese counterpart Dai Bingguo, discussing a wide range of issues including trade and military disagreements.

China hopes to continue the dialogues with Zoellick's successor, said Jiang.

In response to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s reported plan to test fire a long-range missile, Jiang said China has taken note of the report but does not know anything else about the situation.

China hopes all relevant parties can act in a way conducive to peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula, and help ease the tense situation, she said.

She also urged all the parties to act in a practical and flexible manner to allow an early resumption of the Six-Party Talks on the nuclear issue in the Korean Peninsula.

Japanese and Republic of Korea media reports said there was evidence the DPRK was preparing to test a Taepodong-2 long-range missile.

US Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton said on Monday that the US is consulting with other members of the UN Security Council on how to respond to the tests.

Jiang also revealed that President Hu Jintao will attend a meeting of the Group of Eight (G8) and developing countries in St Petersburg in July at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Source: China Daily/Xinhua