China has confirmed that a high-ranking North Korean diplomat visited Beijing earlier this week to discuss the stalled six-party talks on Pyongyang's nuclear program.

A spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry says Kang Sok Ju, North Korea's first vice foreign minister, arrived in Beijing last Saturday for talks with Chinese officials, including Vice Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo. The talks ended Tuesday.

The spokesman did not say if North Korea has agreed to return to the negotiations.

Meanwhile, the head of North Korea's legislature, Choe Thae Bok, told a conference in Manila on Tuesday that his country produced nuclear weapons because it needs to protect itself from an invasion by the United States. Washington has repeatedly said it has no plans for such an attack.

Some information for this report provided by AFP and AP.