President Roh Moo-hyun says that North Korea is responsible for the Korean War and the South can duly request an apology but receiving an apology is not realistic.

In a meeting with foreign correspondents Saturday, he responded to a question on whether it is right for the North to first apologize before replacing the armistice with a peace treaty.

Regarding talks on the peace treaty with related nations, he said that as China has expressed participation, the talks will likely be a four-nation meeting of the two Koreas, the U.S. and China.

When questioned on what he discussed with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in the recent summit about Pyongyang-Tokyo ties, President Roh said he urged Kim to improve ties with Japan. Kim reportedly said that he expects commitment for dialogue from the Japanese prime minister.

Concerning the inter-Korean summit accords, Roh said the next administration may be reluctant to carry on their implementation but that he won't burden the task on the next government.