Russian chief negotiator to the six-party talks Alexander Alexeyev left Beijing Saturday morning.

The fourth round of the talks entered its fifth day, longer than the previous three rounds.

Alexeyev, also Russian deputy foreign minister, told a press conference on Thursday that his deputy and other delegation members would stay in Beijing and he would come back "as soon as it's necessary to come back".

He ruled out the connection between his departure and the progress in the current round of talks, attributing his leaving to domestic affairs.

The fourth round of the six-party talks, involving China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korean, the United States, the Republic of Korea, Russia and Japan, began on Tuesday in the Chinese capital.