North Korea has proposed holding military talks with South Korea, a report said Thursday, in another apparent sign of easing tensions.

The North Wednesday suggested the working-level talks via a military communications line at the border truce village of Panmunjom, Yonhap news agency quoted military authorities in the South as saying.

Cross-border relations have been icy since South Korea and the United States, citing the findings of a multinational investigation, accused the North in May of torpedoing one of Seoul's warships.

The North denied involvement in the March sinking, which killed 46 people, and threatened retaliation for military exercises staged as a warning to Pyongyang.

But this month the North has returned the crew of a detained South Korean boat, offered to hold a new round of reunions for families separated by the peninsula's division and accepted flood aid from Seoul.

earlier related report
Easing sanctions on N. Korea 'very premature': US envoy
Tokyo (AFP) Sept 15, 2010 - The US pointman on North Korea said Wednesday that diplomatic efforts were under way to revive talks to stem Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions but said easing sanctions now would be "very premature".

"We are looking for evidence that North Korea now regards the possibility of negotiations seriously... We want talks that leave specific and concrete results," said Stephen Bosworth, the US special envoy on North Korea.

The isolated and impoverished communist country has staged several atomic and missile tests, and in April last year walked out of six-nation talks to denuclearise the Korean peninsula.

It was also blamed by a multinational panel for the deadly sinking of a South Korean navy ship in March this year.

China, North Korea's closest ally, has in recent weeks urged a resumption of the talks, which have been hosted by Beijing and involved the two Koreas, the United States, China, Russia and Japan.

However, Bosworth cautioned that "there is no reason at the moment to expect that there is going to be a flurry of diplomatic activities in the next few weeks. This is going to take some time."

Bosworth said he and Japanese officials had agreed all sides must work in the coming weeks to "look for the right opportunity in the right moment to reignite the multilateral effort to denuclearise the Korean peninsula".

His trip comes at a time of a slight easing of friction surrounding North Korea, with the United States allowing charities to fly in relief aid in the wake of floods and South Korea sending its own assistance.

But he noted that Washington and its allies would maintain a so-called two-track strategy -- continuing to enforce UN and other sanctions against the reclusive state while remaining open to productive dialogue.

"To discuss sanctions at this point is very premature," he said.

"It is very important to underline that this whole process does not depend just on decisions by the five -- China, Russia, the US, Japan and South Korea. It depends very importantly on the decisions and actions of North Korea."

Bosworth said Washington had not ruled out direct talks with Pyongyang.

"We had those in the past and I think they can take place again," he said. "I think they will take place when we assess that it would be useful to do so."

Bosworth arrived in Tokyo from Seoul on Tuesday and was to leave for Beijing later Wednesday before returning home.