Seoul should stick to 'principle' in NK policies: minister

South Korea should not be swayed by demands from North Korea in its policies dealing with the communist neighbor, the unification minister said Monday, underlining the principle of denuclearization and prevention of any provocations by Pyongyang.

"I think that (the government) should not pursue policies that unilaterally accept demands by the North," Yu Woo-ik told a parliamentary inspection. "We have to stick to the current principle of achieving denuclearization, preventing provocations and encouraging (the North) to take care of its people."

Yu added that the government also has to push for change in the North by sternly dealing with any provocations and at the same time considering offering help from a humanitarian perspective.

The remarks came in response to a question asking what policy direction the next government should take in dealing with North Korea. The next government will be inaugurated early next year after the presidential election in December.

Inter-Korean relations have soured since the current Lee Myung-bak government came into office in 2008 as it took a relatively tougher stance on Pyongyang than those of previous governments.

Answering a question on why North Korea policies pursued by previous and current governments failed to produce intended results, Yu said that the reason is because the North did not recognize the South as its legitimate negotiating partner. (Yonhap News)