U.S. Ambassador Alexander Vershbow said Monday that it's unrealistic for now to expect his country to recognize products manufactured at the inter-Korean Gaesong Industrial Complex as South Korean-made in ongoing bilateral free trade talks, but the U.S. could review the matter if conditions change.

Vershbow's remarks came in response to a call by Unification Minister Lee Jae-jeong for Washington's attention to the matter when the two met Monday.

During the meeting, Vershbow also stressed the importance of U.S.-Korean cooperation during the next round of six-way talks opening Thursday and afterwards. Minister Lee agreed, saying the two countries share the same goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula through dismantlement of Pyongyang's nuclear program.