The Unification Ministry has expressed serious regret over North Korea's plan to test nuclear weapons.

It said that such tests would have a decisively negative impact on inter-Korean relations and pour cold water on efforts to bring peace to the Korean Peninsula.

A ministry spokesman said that with the planned tests, it seems that Pyongyang no longer wishes to stick to a 1992 joint declaration on a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.

The ministry warned that the world community would never tolerate the North's nuclear tests, strongly urging Pyongyang to immediately scrap its plans and return to the six-party talks.

The ministry added that it was sorry to see the tests announced while other six-party dialogue participants have been working proactively to rekindle the stalled negotiations.