Unification Minister Chung Dong-young says the government will not arbitrarily cut off energy aid to North Korea.

In a phone interview with KBS radio Wednesday, Chung said the issue should be discussed within the framework of the six-party talks in late July.

The government has pledged two million kilowatts of energy to the North in return for Pyongyang dropping its nuclear program.

Chung also said the construction of light-water nuclear reactors in the remote North Korean village of Kumho is frozen, not terminated.

He said the government may discuss the peaceful use of the reactors in the near future based on cooperation with the international community

The two reactors were slated for completion in 2003, but tension over the North's nuclear program and other issues has delayed construction.