N.Korea”s ready to rejoin nuclear talks: Kim

BEIJING: North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il has told President Hu Jintao on a rare trip to China he is ready to return to stalled nuclear disarmament negotiations, a media report said Thursday.

South Korea”s news agency, without citing sources, said Kim made the pledge during more than four hours of talks with the Chinese president on Wednesday, during which Hu asked that Pyongyang come back to the table.

The 68-year-old North Korean leader arrived in China on Monday for his first trip abroad in more than four years a mission analysts have said is aimed at securing badly needed assistance for a sanctions-hit economy.