South Korea rejects North Korea offer of dialogue

South Korea on Monday rejected North Korea’s latest offer of dialogue, saying the communist country must be judged on its deeds rather than its words, AFP reports.

The North made what it called a formal proposal Saturday for an "unconditional and early opening" of talks within weeks.

The latest offer followed an apparent easing in tensions, which soared after the North shelled a South Korean border island on November 23 and killed four people including civilians.

But Seoul’s unification ministry, which handles cross-border relations, rejected the latest overture.

"It’s hard to consider it as a sincere offer of dialogue," said spokesman Chun Hae-Sung, adding the North should first show it is serious about denuclearization.

"North Korea must also take responsible steps our people can accept" over the November shelling and the sinking of a South Korean warship in March last year, he said.

"The door for dialogue is open if North Korea shows a sincere attitude," Chun added.

The South says the North torpedoed the ship near the disputed Yellow Sea border with the loss of 46 lives, a charge Pyongyang denies.

Tensions have been acute since the shelling, the first attack on a civilian area in the South since the 1950-53 war. The South has staged a series of military exercises in a show of force.

Pyongyang’s Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland said Saturday there was "neither conditionality in the North’s proposal for dialogue nor need to cast any doubt about its real intention."