President Lee Myung-bak is stressing that North Korea must return to the six-party talks and that nuclear weapons must be dismantled.

Lee made the remark during a meeting with students of international studies at the Korea Development Institute (KDI) on Thursday.

When asked about the prospects for a resumption of the six-party denuclearization talks, Lee said North Korea would have no choice but to take part. He cited collaboration among the talks’ participants as well as other nations around the globe as reasons.

Regarding policies on economic growth, Lee said the government should focus on developing the private sector’s potential, although the government would be required to play a substantial role in the early stages.