U.S. Defense Secretary Colin Powell says he hopes to convene with foreign ministers from six-party talks nations to discuss North Korea's nuclear issue at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum, slated to open Friday in Jakarta, Indonesia.
A U.S. official, requesting anonymity, said Monday that the United States expects to hold talks with the six-party nations' foreign ministers on the nuclear issue on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum.
The official said, however, he was not certain whether the foreign ministers would agree to hold separate bilateral talks with the United States.
Meanwhile, Powell reportedly contacted the foreign ministers of South Korea, China, Russia and Japan Monday to notify them that the date for the handover of sovereignty to Iraq's interim government had been moved up by two days.