China expects successful DPRK-US meeting next week

China expects a successful second summit between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the United States, Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Wednesday.

"We expect the second meeting of the leaders of the DPRK and the US will be held as scheduled and achieve positive results to inject new impetus to the denuclearization and lasting peace on the peninsula," Geng said at a daily news conference.

Direct contact and dialogue between the DPRK and the US hold the key to resolving the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, he said, adding that China always supports the two sides tackling the issue through dialogue.

Republic of Korea President Moon Jae-in said in his phone discussions with US President Donald Trump Tuesday night that his country is ready to assume any role for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Xinhua reported.

DPRK top leader Kim Jong-un and Trump agreed to meet again in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Feb 27-28. The first Kim-Trump summit was held in Singapore in June last year.

US Special Representative for the DPRK Stephen Biegun traveled to Vietnam on Tuesday to finalize preparations for next week's US-DPRK summit, the US State Department said in a statement.

Since last year, there has been a major turnaround of the situation on the Korean Peninsula, as the DPRK-US summit in Singapore broke the impasse of the nuclear issue, Geng said.

It is a result of the joint efforts of all parties, as well as what China has been calling for, he added.

He said that China hopes the two sides will show sincerity and engage in positive interactions.

China also will continue to make efforts and contributions to achieve this goal, he added.