The U.S. State Department says a recent comment by a top U.S. diplomat on North Korea about hopes for bilateral discussions about the six-party talks did not imply that Washington is seeking a one-on-one meeting with Pyongyang.

Department spokesman Philip Crowley made the remark in regards to the comment made by U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy Stephen Bosworth.

Crowley confirmed that Bosworth had said during a media appearance Monday in Seoul that the U.S. will be looking to see how, through bilateral contacts and multilateral contacts, efforts can be made toward denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Crowley added that such bilateral contacts can include any country within the six-party process, not just the United States.

Bosworth earlier said in Seoul that he was looking forward to “a process of bilateral contacts and eventually multilateral contacts that would hopefully result in a resumption of the six-party process.” He added, however, that there is a lot of work that must be done before that can happen.