The government will urge North Korea to return to the six-party nuclear talks during the inter-Korean ministerial meeting in Pyongyang next week.

A government official said Thursday that though the goal of the ministerial meeting is stable management of inter-Korean relations, Seoul will urge Pyongyang to separate U.S. financial sanctions from the six-party talks to resolve the nuclear standoff.

South Korea will also bring up prisoners of war and abductees held in the North, and the compensation package including economic aid will depend on Pyongyang's reaction.

In addition, Seoul will propose the resumption of talks to ease military tension and check the progress of inter-Korean economic cooperation projects.