North Korea calls for improving ties with Seoul

North Korea has called for ending confrontation on the Korean Peninsula and improving north-south ties, the official KCNA news agency reported Monday.

North Korea made a four-point proposal clarifying its principles and stances on easing tensions on the peninsula and achieving "independent reunification" of the nation, a day before the 20th anniversary of the death of former top leader Kim Il Sung, Xinhua reported.

The North Korea government called on both sides to end reckless hostility and confrontation and blaze a road toward reconciliation and unity, the KCNA quoted a statement as saying.

It described the current situation on the peninsula as "grave" when a single remark or tiny friction may cause destruction of the nation as hostility and confrontation have reached extremely high level.

Pyongyang asked Seoul to make a bold decision to change its confrontational policy and suspend all kinds of north-targeted military exercises conducted with "outsiders".

The statement also urged both sides to reject dependence on "outsiders" and settle all issues through their own efforts.

"The north and south should never fall victim to outsiders keen on catching fish in troubled waters through the division of Korea," it stressed.

North Korea also suggested that both sides seek "reasonable reunification proposals". "Fellow countrymen have been increasingly demanding reunification be achieved through a federal formula on the Korean peninsula where different ideologies and social systems exist."

"The north and south should specify the reunification proposals and make efforts to realise them," the statement said.