A Chinese delegation arrived in North Korea today to discuss six-party talks in Beijing to defuse a crisis over Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions.
The official KCNA news agency said the Chinese Foreign Ministry delegation was headed by Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who has played a central role in efforts to bring the North to the negotiating table.
No date has been announced for the talks, but there is speculation they may happen this month or in early September.
North Korea, which had been holding out for face-to-face talks with the United States, agreed to join the United States, China, Japan, South Korea and Russia in the planned talks in the Chinese capital.
Earlier today, North Korea criticised annual joint war exercises between the United States and South Korea, saying they raised doubts as to whether Washington would soften its hostility toward the communist state.