The six-party talks have made an important breakthrough as the fifth round of talks ended with a joint document, State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan said in Beijing yesterday in a meeting with chief delegates to the talks.

The six parties not only set concrete steps to implement the joint statement in the initial phase but also reached consensus on how to carry out the mechanism, Tang said.

The document marks the denuclearization process on the Korean Peninsula has entered a substantial phase, which fully demonstrates the political will of all parties to resolve this issue through peaceful consultations, he said.

He also expressed his congratulation on the positive results achieved in this round.

The significance of this positive results proved that the six-party talks is an effective mechanism to resolve the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, he added.

The five foreign chief delegates spoke highly of China's role in pushing ahead the talks on the occasion, saying this round of talks is a new milestone in the process of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula.

They agreed to sincerely fulfill respective duties and obligations so as to jointly drive forward the talks and achieve enduring peace, stability and prosperity of Northeast Asia.

"The Chinese government firmly supports this joint document and is willing to shoulder its due obligation," Tang said.

(Xinhua News Agency February 14, 2007)