Chinese President Hu Jintao used a phone conversation with his South Korean counterpart Friday to call for new six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions, state media said.
Talking to South Korea's Roh Moo-Hyun, Hu also urged "calm and restraint" as regional tensions remained high over Pyongyang's test firing of missiles earlier this month, according to Xinhua news agency.
"All parties should work hard to create conditions conducive to an early resumption of the six-party talks, in order to ensure that the situation on the peninsula moves in a positive direction," Hu was quoted as saying.
Hu expressed the hope "that all parties will stay calm and restrained and will handle the Korean issue in a responsible manner, avoiding action that will further complicate the situation."
"China has consistently strived to maintain peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and in Northeast Asia and is in favor of solving the problems relating to the peninsula peacefully and through dialogue," Hu said.
Regional diplomacy went into high gear early this month after North Korea launched a barrage of seven missiles, including a long-range Taepodong-2 missile that the United States said failed in the first minute of flight.
Aiming for a solution to the standoff over North Korea's nuclear program, China has hosted a series of six-party talks — also including the two Koreas, the United States, Japan and Russia.
The talks yielded a tentative agreement in September, but have been stalled since November last year, mainly over differences between the United States and North Korea.
