Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul, second from right, speaks with Jeong Se-hyun, right, new deputy chair of the presidential National Unification Advisory Council, while taking part in an event in Seoul to commemorate the first anniversary of the Sept. 19 inter-Korean summit, Thursday. Yonhap

By Lee Min-hyung

The United States and North Korea "should never lose their golden chance for peace talks," even if both sides are still facing a tough road ahead to end decades of hostility and distrust, South Korea's unification minister said Thursday.

"North Korea would be able to take a big step toward a new path called denuclearization if the U.S. and the North engage in substantive and reasonable negotiations on the basis of their bilateral trust," Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul said in a congratulatory message on the first anniversary of the historic inter-Korean summit held in Pyongyang.

The unification chief went on to say that the South Korean government would also "do everything it could" to back up the reviving dialogue momentum between the U.S. and the North.

"We are going to closely consult with the U.S., and leave open a channel for communication with the North for the two interested parties to generate good outcomes during their upcoming working-level talks," the unification minister said.