He also urged the concerned parties to remain cool-headed and make efforts to resolve the issue within the framework of six-party talks.

"I don't think it (the nuclear test) should be regarded as a failure of China's foreign policy and a failure of the six-party mechanism. The concerned parties should continue to generate effort to keep the six-party talks mechanism on track," Liu said at a routine press conference.

"The six parties, together with most countries in the world, are willing to resolve the Korean nuclear issue through consultation and dialogue under the six-party talks framework, which is enough to prove that the mechanism is still the best way to resolve the issue," Liu added.

The six-party talks, involving China, the DPRK, the United States, the Republic of Korea, Russia and Japan, stalled after the DPRK criticized the United States for imposing economic sanctions after the first phase of the fifth round of talks ended last November.

Calling the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue "tough" and "complicated," the spokesman said joint efforts should be employed to implement the consensus that has already been reached and work for an early resumption of the six-party talks.

"All efforts should be conducive to the realization of a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula, to the peace and development of the Peninsula and Northeast Asia and to the early resumption of the six-party talks," he explained.

China is making diplomatic efforts and hopes for positive responses from other parties concerned, the spokesman said.

As the host country of the talks, Liu said, China has played an important role and made unremitting efforts to resolve the nuclear issue.

The DPRK's first nuclear test on Sunday came about a week after the country announced it would conduct the underground blast.