Beijing  - China's Prime Minister Wen Jiabao failed to achieve a breakthrough on the resumption of international talks about North Korea's nuclear programme during his visit to Pyongyang.

North Korean ruler Kim Jong Il made resumption of the six-party talks much more dependent on progress in bilateral talks with the US.

Following his three-day visit during the celebrations marking the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between North Korea and China Wen Jiabao returned home to Beijing on Tuesday.

US State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said the US was still ready to engage in bilateral contact with North Korea through the six-party talks.

He said the US agrees with the four other participants in the talks - China, South Korea, Japan and Russia - that the six-party talks were the "best mechanism" to achieve a nuclear-free Korean peninsula.

North Korea quit the six-party talks in April and carried out its second underground atomic test in May.

North Korea is continuing the reconstruction of its nuclear installations in Yongbyon, South Korean media have reported. There are signs that the reconstruction work is in its final phase, the South Korean news agency Yonhap reported citing government sources. (dpa)