South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday he plans to visit the US next week to discuss with US officials the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue.

 

Ban said he will have discussion with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during his Washington trip. He will also send senior officials to Russia and Japan for similar consultations, he said.

 

Ban's US trip comes after the fourth round of six-party talks aimed to resolve the nuclear issue entered recess last Sunday. The six countries -- China, the US, Russia, Japan, North and South Korea -- agreed to resume the talks in the week beginning August 29.

 

"The participating countries are hoped to hold separate consultations during the recess period," Ban said at a weekly news briefing.

 

"The three-week recess is very important for smooth progress of negotiations when they are resumed, so we will make the most of it," said Ban.

 

During the first stage of the fourth round of six-party talks, North Korea and the US failed to narrow differences over whether Pyongyang can have right of peaceful nuclear utilization.

 

In the press briefing, Ban indicated that North Korea needs time to build trust with the international community before it enjoys the right to peaceful nuclear activities.

 

Local media expected the South Korean government may have an opportunity to discuss the issue with a high-ranking North Korean official scheduled to visit Seoul for joint celebrations of the Korean Peninsula's liberation from Japanese colonial rule 60 years ago in mid-August.

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 10, 2005)