North Korea says it may be willing to return to six-party international talks on its nuclear weapons programme, state media have reported.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is said to have made the announcement to Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao before he left Pyongyang after a three-day visit.
But Mr Kim said the return would be dependent on the progress of its planned bilateral talks with the US.
The US says it remains ready to engage with North Korea.
Highlighting the urgency of restarting talks, a South Korean source said the North appeared to be in the final stages of restoring the nuclear programme at Yongbyon that it had shut down before abandoning the six-party process.
“We have obtained indications that point to restoration work being in the final stages,” Reuters news agency quoted the source as saying.
“The work to restore nuclear facilities at Yongbyon has been ongoing since early this year.”
