Representatives of the two Koreas and the United States discussed key issues concerning the Korean Peninsula on a nongovernmental level during a forum at the University of Georgia in the southern United States on Monday.

The North sent a nine-member delegation led by Asia-Pacific Peace Committee Vice Chairman Ri Jong-hyuk to the forum organized by the university's Center for the Study of Global Issues.

At the forum, Ri described the conditions on the Korean Peninsula as severe and called for substantial progress in inter-Korean relations as well as North Korea-U.S. ties.

Through Thursday, the North’s delegation, retired and active-duty U.S. diplomats, and legislators from South Korea will discuss ways to resume the stalled six-way nuclear talks and ways to promote inter-Korean economic cooperation.

The forum comes as the U.S. and the North are expected to hold a second round of high-level talks at the end of this month.