Envoys of China, Russia, Japan briefed on sinking

The government explained the cause of the sinking of its warship to the Seoul-based diplomats of China, Russia and Japan, three neighboring countries involved in a six-nation forum aimed at denuclearizing North Korea, Yonhap News reported Wednesday.

It will also invite envoys of other countries in Seoul to the Foreign Ministry late this week to explain the outcome of its probe into the March 26 sinking that killed 46 seamen, the agency said.

The results, expected to pinpoint North Korea as the culprit, will be disclosed to the public on Thursday. A Foreign Ministry official, who declined to be identified, said diplomatic officials of China, Russia and Japan were briefed Tuesday in separate sessions.

The ministry had initially scheduled meetings with the diplomats on Wednesday. The official said their embassies wanted the meetings to be kept secret until later in the week.

"They requested that the briefings be kept undisclosed to the press," the official said, adding that it remained unclear whether Chinese Ambassador Zhang Xinsen attended the briefing himself, as the ambassadors of Japan and Russia did.