The United States is calling on North Korea to cease actions that it says are destabilizing in the Northeast Asian region.

State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters Thursday that North Korea needs to take irreversible steps toward denuclearization and must comply with international law. He added that Pyongyang should take actions that improve relations with its neighbors and cease what he called “belligerent behavior.”

He made the comment after being asked if the U.S. would be prepared to accept Pyongyang’s offer, should it announce its willingness to return to the six-way nuclear talks.

Crowley said that although the U.S. remains open to meaningful dialogue, actions speak more loudly than words for North Korea. He said Washington will be guided by what the North does, not what it says it might be willing to do.