South Korea proposes high-level talks with North Korea

South Korea yesterday proposed holding high-level talks with Pyongyang on January 9, after the North's leader Kim Jong-Un called for a breakthrough in relations and said Pyongyang might attend the Winter Olympics

Kim Jong Un expressed his interest in holding talks with the South in his New Year address. Pic/AFP

South Korea yesterday proposed holding high-level talks with Pyongyang on January 9, after the North's leader Kim Jong-Un called for a breakthrough in relations and said Pyongyang might attend the Winter Olympics. Kim used his annual New Year address to underscore Pyongyang's claim that it has developed a weapons deterrent and warn that he had a "nuclear button" on hand, but sweetened his remarks by expressing an interest in dialogue and participating in the South's Games.

South Korea's unification minister Cho Myoung-Gyon said Seoul was "reiterating our willingness to hold talks with the North at any time and place in any form". "We hope that the South and North can sit face to face and discuss the participation of the North Korean delegation at the Pyeongchang Games as well as other issues of mutual interest for the improvement of inter-Korean ties," he said.

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