A South Korean official who visited Washington last week says talks to discuss North Korea's nuclear program could resume as early as this month.

In a radio interview Monday, Kim Sook, director-general for North American affairs at the South Korean Foreign Ministry, said he is cautiously optimistic about the resumption of six-party talks in July. He added that North Korea has not set a firm date for their return to the negotiating table.

Mr. Kim joined South Korea's Unification Minister, Chung Dong-young, in Washington last week for talks with U.S. officials concerning Pyongyang.

Reuters quotes Japan's foreign minister today saying Tokyo's patience on North Korea's decision is running out. Nobutaka Machimura told the news agency that Japan is neither optimistic nor pessimistic about the talks resuming anytime soon.