Broadcasting Time: 2006-05-26

The six-party talks broke off last November after five rounds of negotiations.  North Korea has said it will not return to the talks unless the United States lifts its sanctions, but Washington has so far refused to budge.  But can US nuclear envoy Christopher Hill's ongoing East Asia tour help to ease tensions, and what else can China do to break the impasse?  Ni hao, you're listening to People In the Know, China's only English-language political current affairs program, online at www.crienglish.com here on China Radio International.  In this edition of our program, we'll talk about the current status of the nuclear issue in the Korean Peninsula, and the prospect of a resumption of negotiations.  So let's get started.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao.

First, to talk about the realities and outlook for the six party talks, we're first joined by Prof. Chen Dongxiao, Director of the American Studies Department at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies. 

After a quick break, an American perspective.

US Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, who is also the US envoy in North Korean nuclear issue.

Ni hao, you're listening to People In the Know, online at www.crienglish.com here on China Radio International.  I'm Paul James in Beijing.  In this edition of our program, we're talking about the stalled six party nuclear talks.  For more on that, we're now joined by Prof. Shelley Rigger, Brown Professor of East Asian Politics at Davidson College in North Carolina, who's currently a visiting scholar in Shanghai.

And that wraps up this edition of People In the Know, online at www.crienglish.com here on China Radio International.  If you have any questions or comments, please send them to us.  Our email address is crieng@crifm.com.  For Executive Director Lin Lin, and Producer Chen Xi, I'm Paul James in Beijing.  Zhou mo you kuai.  We'll talk to you on Monday.