Speaking to reporters after a lengthy meeting with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, envoy Tang Jiaxuan said both wanted the current six-party talks in Beijing to "move forward" and "produce substantial results."

Tang, a former foreign minister and currently a state councillor in charge of foreign affairs, is Chinese President Hu Jintao's special envoy to North Korea.

Tang had held talks with Rice when she visited Beijing earlier this month and then flew to Pyongyang for a rare meeting with North Korea's reclusive leader Kim Jong-Il.

China, with its close ties with North Korea, was the key player in the diplomatic efforts to bringing Pyongyang back to six-way talks, which reconvened on Tuesday after being stalled for about a year.

Tang, who met Rice for about 70 minutes at her office Wednesday, said they had "very good" talks and that the top US diplomat was "very satisfied" with the discussions.

They felt that "hard work" and "cooperation" were essential for diplomatic efforts to achieve a breakthrough in the nuclear talks among China, the two Koreas, the United States, Japan and Russia.

After two days of talks in Beijing, fundamental differences remain with North Korea but discussions would continue, a senior US official said in the Chinese capital.

North Korea had said it was willing to dismantle its atomic weapons and allow their disposal to be verified in return for a normalisation of ties with the United States, among other conditions.

The North has long urged Washington to establish diplomatic relations and provide assurances of non-aggression if the deadlock is to be broken.

While the US has said it recognises North Korea's sovereignty and has no intention of attacking it, it has made no commitment to normalising relations.

North Korea abandoned the six-party talks last year, complaining of hostile US policy, and has since claimed it already possesses nuclear weapons.

But a softer US approach, coupled with a threat to take the issue to the United Nations, enticed it back to the negotiating table. Delegates at the talks say the atmosphere is much better than before.

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