South Korea Agrees to Host Cabinet-Level Talks
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South and North Korea agreed Wednesday to hold Cabinet-level talks in Seoul next week amid tension over the North's nuclear weapons development, South Korea said.
South Korea accepted the North's proposal to hold the talks on Jan. 21-24, a week later than suggested by South Korea, said Kim Jung-ro, a spokesman at the South's Unification Ministry.
South Korean officials have said they would use the talks to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear ambitions.
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The Koreas have held eight rounds of Cabinet-level talks since a historic summit of their leaders in 2000.
The last round of talks was held in October, days after U.S. officials said that North Korea admitted to having a secret nuclear weapons program using enriched uranium.
Cabinet-level talks are the highest channel of dialogue between the two sides.
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Inter-Korean exchanges, which flourished after the 2000 summit, have slowed in recent months because of the nuclear standoff and other disputes.