The deadlocked six-party nuclear talks are set to resume early next month.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said U.S. President George W. Bush agreed to resume the talks with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso in a meeting on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Lima, Peru.

Perino said the three leaders chose the date for the talks but host country China will announce it.

Whether North Korea has agreed to the resumption is unconfirmed, but experts said parties to the talks have come to an agreement with the North, given that the White House expects Beijing to announce the resumption soon.

President Bush removed the North from the U.S. list of state terrorism sponsors in mid-October as part of a denuclearization agreement. The talks, however, remain on hiatus as Pyongyang and Washington have failed to find common ground on nuclear verification.

Meanwhile, U.S. President-elect Barack Obama said he will resolve the North's nuclear program through active diplomacy. His transition team has indicated that the new U.S. administration will pursue tough and direct policies toward Pyongyang.

The U.S. Center for American Progress recently proposed that Obama send a special envoy to the North within 100 days of taking office.