Unification Minister Lee Jae-jeong says inter-Korean dialogue must go hand in hand with the six-way nuclear talks to realize a peaceful, nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.

Amid a cooling of inter-Korean dialogue since North Korea's October nuclear test, the minister on Thursday said that Seoul aims to resume cross-border talks as soon as possible. The last high-level dialogue between the two Koreas was at ministerial talks in July.

Minister Lee said that the nuclear talks and inter-Korean dialogue should be mutually complementary, likening them to two interconnected wheels.

Underscoring the importance of building trust between the two Koreas, he urged humanitarian partnership and cooperation alongside the implementation of inter-Korean agreements.