Koreas Close to Accord on Family Reunions

South and North Korea were close to agreement Friday on a schedule for reuniting families long separated by the Korean War, in rare talks being held amid Pyongyang's push to reach out to Seoul and Washington, The Associated Press reported.

Red Cross officials from the two sides were expected to wrap up three days of talks with an accord to hold six days of temporary reunions involving a total of 200 families from Sept. 26, AP said quoting reports in local media accredited to cover the talks.

However, the sides failed to reach agreement on how to address the issue of hundreds of South Korean prisoners of war and civilian abductees believed alive in the North, because the communist nation refused to discuss the matter, the official was cited as saying.

The meetings came after the North adopted a more conciliatory stance toward South Korea and the U.S. following months of defiant provocations including its second nuclear test in May and a barrage of banned ballistic missile launches.

Earlier this month, the North freed two American journalists and a South Korean worker after more than four months of detention and pledged to restart some joint projects, including the meetings of separated families that have been stalled since the inauguration of a conservative government in Seoul about 18 months ago.

The North also sent a delegation to Seoul to mourn the death of former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung.

South Korean media reported earlier this week that Pyongyang invited Washington's two top envoys on North Korea to visit in what would be their first nuclear talks since President Barack Obama took office.

State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters Thursday that the U.S. has not received a formal invitation from the North. He also said special envoy Stephen Bosworth plans to travel to Asia soon, but won't go to North Korea.

South Korea's Yonhap News reported Friday that four North Korean officials visited the U.S. last week to meet with American relief organizations and discuss the resumption of food aid to the impoverished nation. But their trip did not include meetings with U.S. government officials, Yonhap said, citing unidentified sources in Washington.