PYONGYANG - The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Sunday proposed high-level talks with the United States "to defuse tension and realize regional peace and security on the Korean Peninsula," the official KCNA News agency reported.

The proposal was made by a spokesman of the DPRK's National Defense Commission in a special statement.

Both sides could discuss issues of common concern, such as easing military tensions on the Korean Peninsula, replacing the armistice which ended the Korean War with a peace treaty, and the US-advocated world "free of nuclear weapons," said the spokesman.

He also said that Washington could decide the date and venue of the talks.