A senior Chinese official Saturday departed for Pyongyang as part of international efforts to persuade North Korea to return to six-party nuclear talks.

Wang Jiarui, head of China's Communist Party's international liaison department, wil hold a chain of meetings with North Korean leaders to figure out Pyongyang's intent behind its bombshell announcement made earlier this month.

The Chinese official is expected to clearly tell North Korea that even China would not tolerate the North's pursuit of nuclear ambitions.

Wang Jiarui will also deliver messages from Seoul and Washington urging the communist state to return to the bargaining table.

He is also believed to offer economic incentives to the North in a bid to persuade the country to return to six-party negotiations.