North Korea agreed Tuesday to return to six-way talks on its nuclear program that had been stalled for almost a year.

China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its Web site that North Korea, the United States and China held an unofficial meeting in Beijing and agreed to resume the six-party talks at their earliest mutual convenience.

The ministry said that chief nuclear negotiators of the three countries held a candid and in-depth exchange of views on continuing efforts to advance the six-party talks process.

After the meeting, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill held a news conference at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, saying that if all parties agree, the six-nation talks would resume in early November or December.

He noted that North Korea made no conditions for returning to the negotiating table and reiterated its willingness to abandon its nuclear program if concessions are made at the talks.

Hill added that if the six-nation talks resume, the U.S. would address the North's concerns over financial sanctions imposed by Washington on the communist country.

The two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia held the fifth round of nuclear talks in November last year, after issuing a six-point joint statement calling for Pyongyang's abandonment of its nuclear weapons and related programs in return for energy assistance.

However, following U.S. sanctions on the North for its alleged currency counterfeiting and drug trafficking the talks reached a deadlock due to confrontation between Washington and Pyongyang.

Tensions escalated to a near-crisis as North Korea test-fired ballistic missiles in July and conducted a nuclear test on October 9th.