North Korea vows to denuclearise

North Korea 8220;will make efforts to realise it,8221; he told South Korean Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung in Pyongyang.

Lee pressed for North Korea to follow through on its breakthrough February 13 agreement with the US and four other countries to shut down its sole operating nuclear reactor in 60 days, and to eventually dismantle atomic programmes.

8220;It is important to make efforts to ensure that South and North Korea cooperate and six countries each assume their responsibilities,8221; Lee said.

Kim Yong Nam also called for the two Koreas to work together to reunify the peninsula, which was divided after World War II and remains officially at war since the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a cease-fire, not a peace treaty.

South Korea has been one of the North8217;s main aid sources since the two nations held their first and only summit in 2000. This week8217;s meetings are the 20th cabinet-level talks since then. But South Korea halted rice and fertiliser shipments to the North after it test-fired a barrage of missiles last July, and relations worsened following North8217;s Oct 9 nuclear test.

The provocations were the most serious challenge yet to South Korea8217;s 8220;sunshine8221; policy of engagement with its longtime foe. The policy has been criticised by conservatives for helping prop up the North8217;s totalitarian regime without requiring reforms or disarmament.