China and North Korea will likely hold bilateral talks in Vientiane on Monday, China's foreign ministry spokeswoman hinted.

Asked if both will have talks on the sidelines of ASEAN meetings under way in the Laotian capital, Hua Chunying told Yonhap News Agency, "Probably."

The spokeswoman added that things will be determined sooner or later, citing that China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is taking part in ongoing meetings with ASEAN members.

Attention has been paid to whether China and North Korea will hold talks at this year's ASEAN gathering, including the ASEAN Regional Forum. They didn't meet at last year's gathering in Malaysia.

Wang and North Korean Foreign Minster Ri Yong-ho arrived in Laos on Sunday by taking the same flight that departed from Beijing.

Late on Sunday, Wang told Yonhap before going into his talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se, "It could be possible" to have a bilateral meeting with the North. He didn't elaborate further at the time. (Yonhap)