South Korean President Park Geun-hye said on Monday she is prepared to hold talks with North Korea without precondition, encouraging the North to "stop hesitating and accept calls for dialogue," The Washington Post reported.
"North Korea should stop hesitating anymore and accept calls for dialogue," Park said during a news conference at the presidential Blue House in Seoul on Monday.
"I am willing to meet anyone to ease this pain and for peaceful unification," Park continued. "For this purpose, I am willing to have a summit meeting with North Korea. There are no preconditions, but North Korea needs to be open-minded and have sincere intentions."
She specifically emphasized the need for talks to find a "fundamental solution" for the "separated families" who were torn apart by the Korean War six decades ago.
The appeal from the South followed a New Year's Day speech by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, in which he made a similar call for increased dialogue between the two countries, which are technically still at war.
In his annual New Year address, Kim said he is also willing to resume the "highest level" talks with the South. He has not met a foreign leader since he became North Korea's leader three years ago, according to the Post.
"We believe we can resume suspended senior-level talks and hold other talks on specific issues if South Korea sincerely has a position that it wants to improve North-South relations through a dialogue," Kim said. "And there is no reason not to hold the highest-level talks if the atmosphere and conditions are met."
Pyongyang said last week that it is willing to halt its nuclear tests if Washington stops planned military drills with South Korea, but Washington viewed the request as an "implicit threat," reported The Associated Press.
