A North Korean official says the North's definition of a "nuclear-free" Korean Peninsula is complete nuclear removal by both Koreas and a ban on incoming nuclear arms and materials.

Chung Sung-il, deputy director of the North Korean Foreign Ministry's international organizations bureau, made the remark Friday to reporters before entering a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum in Laos.

Chung is accompanying North Korean Foreign Minister Baek Nam-sun.

For a nuclear-free peninsula, Chung said Pyongyang and Washington must first end their hostility, and to that end, systems and legal devices for peaceful coexistence are needed between the two sides.