South Korea has urged North Korea to come to the dialogue table without any preconditions if it has the sincere will to improve inter-Korean relations.
 
Unification Ministry spokesman Lim Byeong-cheol made the call on Friday, saying the South Korean government has always maintained that all inter-Korean issues should be resolved through government-level talks.
 
Lim’s remarks came a day after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s New Year’s speech on Thursday in which he called for suspending South Korea-U.S. military drills as a precondition to inter-Korean dialogue. During the speech, he said that credible dialogue cannot be continued in a hostile atmosphere where practices of war are taking place.
 
In response to the North’s demand, Lim stressed that the South will stand firm on its principles in dealing with the North’s unilateral demand on military exercises. He also shed light on Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae’s remarks on the previous day, explaining that Seoul will not be bound by formalities in holding talks with the North in order to have substantive and candid discussions. 
 
Shortly after the North Korean leader's speech on Thursday, the unification minister expressed hope that the two Koreas will hold government-level talks in the near future without being bound by formalities.