Kim Yong-nam, Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly and second in the hierarchy in North Korea, has reportedly presented three prerequisites for returning to the six-party denuclearization talks.

Japan’s Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported from Beijing on Saturday that Kim stated three preconditions for a return to the talks during a meeting with Italian officials in Pyongyang on Thursday.

The preconditions reportedly included a peace treaty with the U.S. and China, a bilateral agreement with the U.S. on guaranteeing the safety of the Pyongyang regime, and the lifting of economic sanctions.

The newspaper said that Kim cited only the U.S. and China, not South Korea, as parties to the talks for a peace treaty.

The Italian delegation was in Pyongyang from Tuesday to Friday and returned to Italy via Beijing.