The United States says it has yet to talk with North Korea on Pyongyang`s offer of bilateral military talks on establishing a permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula.

State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey told a news briefing Saturday that if the North has certain ideas on a bilateral meeting, there will be an opportunity to discuss the matter either within the six-party framework or in individual meetings.

North Korean Lieutenant General Ri Chan-bok, who heads the North`s mission at Panmunjeom, announced Saturday that Pyongyang wants direct military talks with Washington in the presence of a United Nations representative any place and any time.

Ri said the North wants to focus on issues related to ensuring peace and security on the peninsula.

The two Koreas remain technically at war since the Korean War ended in 1953 without a formal peace treaty.