South Korea, US to put more pressure on North Korea

South Korea and the United States have reaffirmed their resolve to ratchet up pressure on North Korea in their high-level talks, the Foreign Ministry said Tuesday, according to Yonhap News Agency.

On his trip to Washington, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se held a series of meetings with U.S. National Security Adviser Susan Rice and other top officials.

"The two sides agreed to make efforts for the resumption of meaningful talks with North Korea, along with stronger pressure," the ministry said in a press release.

It added the allies will deal resolutely with Pyongyang's provocations on the basis of robust combined deterrence, citing "unstable internal situations" in the reclusive communist nation.

The two sides reiterated the commitment to pushing for summit talks between President Park Geun-hye and her American counterpart Barack Obama "at the earliest mutually convenient time," according to the ministry.

Park initially planned to visit Washington this month for a summit with Obama, but she canceled it due to the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome at home.