Formal talks between South and North Korea may be on the horizon. Citing an unnamed source, Yonhap News reported that government officials from the two Koreas secretly met for talks last week in the North Korean border city of Kaesong.

A senior Unification Ministry official from Seoul is said to have held discussions with a Pyongyang counterpart last Saturday to fine-tune agendas for possibly the next high-level inter-Korean meeting.

Yonhap says the two sides may have exchanged views on issues concerning Seoul's food aid for North Koreans, cross-border family reunions, surviving South Korean POWs in the North, and the whereabouts of South Korean abductees.

Seoul is also seeking to restart a joint tour operation near the North's Mt. Kumgang and to open working-level negotiations over the safe passage of border crossers.