President Lee Myung-bak says real signs of change have been detected in inter-Korean relations.

Before embarking on a state visit to the U.S. on Wednesday, the South Korean president said in an interview with the Washington Post in Seoul that there are signs that the current administration’s inter-Korea policy is beginning to work.

President Lee said in the past, nuclear weapons were never an agenda item in inter-Korean dialogue, and bilateral talks were limited to discussing the amount of support to provide to North Korea. However, he said North Korea had begun to indicate it was willing to talk about its nuclear program.

The Washington Post reported that President Lee denied rumors that South Korea would reconsider its key principle, that North Korea must pledge denuclearization in order to improve inter-Korean relations.

Regarding South Korea-U.S. relations, Lee said the two countries' free trade agreement sends a powerful signal to the world on the U.S. policy of engagement in Asia. He said the trade deal would strengthen South Korea-U.S. relations into an economic alliance.