DPRK offers to ROK military talks to ease tensions

SEOUL -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has offered to the Republic of Korea (ROK) holding a working-level contact for inter-Korean talks between military authorities as early as late May, a state-run DPRK broadcaster reported on Saturday.

The Pyongyang Broadcasting Station (PBS) was quoted by ROK's Yonhap news agency as reporting that the Ministry of the People's Armed Forces under the DPRK's National Defense Commission had sent a notice to ROK's military authorities.

With the notice, Pyongyang made overtures to Seoul for a working-level contact to hold inter-governmental military talks at a convenient venue and date for ROK between late May and early June to ease military tensions on the Korean peninsula and create a trustworthy atmosphere between the two sides.

The notice said the military authorities of the two Koreas should make straightforward discussions on current issues relevant to possible military conflicts as well as need to agree upon and enforce institutional and legal measures mandatory to taking realistic actions for securing military trust between the two sides.

The notice came a day after the DPRK's National Defense Commission said in an open letter Friday that ROK should immediately respond to top DPRK leader Kim Jong-un's proposal for inter-Korean military talks.

Seoul's defense ministry said Friday that Pyongyang should show its change in attitude toward denuclearization with actions before making dialogue overtures, stressing that ROK had maintained a firm position that denuclearization is a top priority in talks with the DPRK.

The ministry reportedly said that it received the DPRK notice for the dialogue offer through a military communication line in the western region.