China, host of the six-party talks on the North Korean nuclear issue, is trying to get all the parties to sit down together. However, as President Hu Jintao said after his summit with US President George W. Bush: 'The six-party talks have run into some difficulties at the moment. I hope the parties will be able to further display flexibility, work together and create necessary conditions for the early resumption of the talks.'
The US representative to the talks, Christopher Hill, is also trying to achieve a consensus. This week, he is visiting China and South Korea in an effort to inject new life into the talks.
According to The New York Times, Mr Bush is considering a new approach that would include negotiations on a peace treaty. The Bush administration subsequently denied there was a new approach, but confirmed it was open to discussions on a peace treaty. Since Pyongyang had asked for such a treaty with Washington, willingness to discuss it may entice North Korea back to the table.
However, there are formidable obstacles. North Korea has demanded the US lift sanctions before the talks can resume. These sanctions were imposed after Washington accused Pyongyang of counterfeiting US currency and of using financial institutions in Macau for money laundering.
The US does seem to have a new sense of urgency. While Washington wants North Korea to emulate Libya and voluntarily abandon all weapons of mass destruction, it does not want North Korea to be a model for Iran in successfully defying the US.
Actually, considerable progress was registered last September when the six parties - the US, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Russia and China - issued a joint statement indicating their first real breakthrough since the talks began in 2003.
In that statement, North Korea agreed to abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programmes in return for aid and diplomatic recognition.