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Japan and the US agreed yesterday to push harder to get North Korea to hold the next round of multilateral talks on its nuclear arms programme, perhaps as soon as November, Japanese officials said.

The decision was made in a meeting between Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda and James Kelly, visiting US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs.

"We're hoping to have something within next month or the next five or six weeks, but we don't know that for sure," Kelly later told reporters in Tokyo.

Fukuda said separately at a news conference that no decision has been made on the next round of talks.

China, Japan, North and South Korea, Russia and the US launched the negotiations to resolve the North Korean nuclear programme, and agreed to continue discussions to ensure the Korean Peninsula remains free of nuclear arms.

The six nations, however, failed to agree on a date and venue for the next round of talks.

North Korea has repeatedly said it made no promise about holding another round.

On Tuesday North Korea announced it had "no interest" in discussions over its nuclear programme.

Kelly expressed disappointment with the North's stance and said it is important to convince Pyongyang that "the best way to security in the future is not through (nuclear) weapons".

Kelly has been in Tokyo to take part in two days of talks among Japan, the US and South Korea on the North Korean nuclear issue.

The two-day meeting ended Tuesday without an agreement on whether to suspend an international project to build two light-water nuclear reactors in the North.

It was the first policy coordination among the three countries following the six-nation talks.

South Korea's President Roh Moo Hyun Wednesday again offered North Korea assistance in reform efforts to open up the country if it renounced its nuclear programme.

"I again urge the North to abandon its nuclear development and come onto the path toward peace and co-existence," said Roh at a ceremony for the 55th ROK Armed Forces Day at a Seoul military airport.

Roh said finding a solution to the nuclear conflict with North Korea was his largest task.

He added that as soon as the conflict is settled consultations could begin with North Korea over military measures.

"We will work on diverse support measures to bring success in the reform and openness of North Korea," said Roh.

Unphased by North Korea's pronouncement on Tuesday of not being interested in future talks over its nuclear programme, Roh remained optimistic for the second round of six-nation talks.

"I expect that the second round of the talks will be held in due time and will produce good results," he said.

At the same time, Roh spoke out in favour of a further strengthening of the 50-year-old security alliance between South Korea and the US.

Roh said the alliance "played an important role in safeguarding world peace".

US ambassador in Seoul Thomas Hubbard called the Mutual Defence Treaty signed on October 1, 1953 "the cornerstone of one of the most dynamic partnerships formed between two nations throughout the course of history". – Sapa.

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