The Foreign Ministers of South Korea, Japan and China opened talks on this resort island today on wide-ranging issues, including six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear weapons program that have been stalled over a banking dispute, South Korean news agency "Yonhap" reported today. South Korean Foreign Minister Song Min-soon first met his Japanese counterpart, Taro Aso, and planned to separately meet his Chinese counterpart, Yang Jiechi, later. The three then will meet together. At the bilateral meeting, Song and Aso agreed to continue cooperation on persuading North Korea to give up its nuclear ambition, meanwhile increasing exchanges and cooperation between their two countries, a Foreign Ministry spokesman later told reporters. "The two ministers also agreed to hold the eighth South Korea-Japan talks on exclusive economic zones on June 17-18 in Seoul," the ministry spokesman, Cho Hee-yong, said in a press release. Aso was also scheduled to meet with his Chinese counterpart separately before the planned three-way meeting, according to South Korean foreign ministry officials. The Jeju meeting comes amid a delay in implementing a six-party deal adopted in February, in which North Korea agreed to shut down its main nuclear reactor in exchange for energy aid and political rewards. -- SPA
