The Ministry of Unification has saved direct comment on fresh U.S. sanctions on North Korea over the regime's human rights abuses.

Responding to a question in a Monday briefing, unification ministry spokesperson Lee Jong-joo said Seoul has made consistent efforts toward a stable management of security on the Korean Peninsula, and balanced achievements in the peace process, improving inter-Korean ties and promoting human rights in North Korea.

Lee added South Korea will continue working with the international community, while seeking to expand cross-border cooperation. She declined to comment on the sanctions as they were introduced under U.S. law.

Last Friday, the Joe Biden administration imposed sanctions on North Korea's new Defense Minister Ri Yong-gil, the Central Public Prosecutors Office, and a number of other entities in the North, China and Russia for human rights violations.

As for President Moon Jae-in's statement from Australia that the North has agreed in principle to declaring a formal end to the Korean War, Lee said the regime agreed to pursuing the declaration when the two Koreas' leaders met in 2007 and 2018.