Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae has commented on North Korea's repeated calls for improving inter-Korean relations, saying the two Koreas should pick up from where they left off. 
 
The minister gave a lecture on Tuesday at a forum in Seoul and said inter-Korean relations have been strained due to North Korea unilaterally postponing planned reunions of separated families last year.
 
Ryoo also criticized the North's recent proposals to the South as he said the North made offers the South cannot accept. He said he believes Pyongyang knows Seoul cannot accept its proposals. The minister also said inter-Korean relations would not last anyways even if South Korea accepts the North's offers. 
 
He said the government will work to resolve pending issues with the North one by one and ultimately improve inter-Korean relations under its North Korea policy, known as the Korean Peninsula trust-building process.