Visiting South Korean Foreign minister Yun Byung-se has met with US Secretary of State John Kerry amid the latest threats from North Korea. Both parties highlight the role of the six-party talks.

The escalation of tension on the Korean Peninsula, among other issues, has taken a center stage during their talks.

Secretary Kerry says North Korea's recent rhetoric is unacceptable and urged Pyongyang to return to negotiations.

"It's dangerous, reckless. The United States will not accept the DPRK as a nuclear state. And I reiterate again the United States will do what is necessary to defend ourselves and defend our allies. We make it clear as we have consistently, that the United States believes there is a very simple way for North Korea to rejoin the community of nations and make it clear that they want to pursuit a peaceful path. So they have an option, and that option is to enter negotiations for the denuclearization."

Secretary Kerry says the United States will strengthen cooperation with its allies and keep close consultation with other stakeholders of the six-party-talks, especially with China to achieve the goal of a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.

South Korean Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister Yun Byung-se also highlighted the important role of the stalled six-party-talks.

"The six-party-talks is still very useful tool to implement, to actually make efforts towards denuclearization of the North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Even though this is a very difficult task, we believe, with China and many members of the six-party-talks, we should continue these efforts with patience."

The talks, involving North and South Korea, China, the United States, Japan and Russia haven't taken place since 2009, after the North's first failed satellite launch drew broad condemnation. Pyongyang then re-started its nuclear enrichment program.

Meanwhile, US media has ruled out the immediate threat of North Korea's nuclear program.

North Korea agreed to mothball the plutonium reactor and destroy its cooling tower as a part of a 2007 aid-for-disarmament deal at the six-party talks. Nuclear scientists say it will take at least a year of restarted operations to generate enough plutonium to make one nuclear bomb.

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