A top U.S. State Department official says improved South-North Korea ties must come first before efforts can be made to hold U.S.-North Korea talks.

The State Department's special adviser for nonproliferation and arms control, Robert Einhorn, said Monday that “whatever discussions take place on an unofficial level, the important thing is for the North and South to sit down and for the North to be responsive to South Korea's concerns about the provocative actions they took in 2010.”

Einhorn made the statement after being asked to comment on a private forum that is taking place in Germany between North Korean and U.S. officials.

Einhorn only said that Washington does not feel the need to establish a new dialogue channel with the North, given that they already have a New York channel which they regularly use when holding contacts.