South Korea's President Lee Myung-bak will meet a delegation of visiting North Korean officials tomorrow, the latest sign that ties between the divided countries are warming.

North Korea responded to new UN sanctions with more defiance today, promising to step up its nuclear bomb-making program by enriching uranium and threatening war on any country that dares to stop its ships on the high seas.

The death of a South Korean tourist shot by a North Korean soldier while visiting the Communist nation overshadowed efforts by Seoul’s new president to reach out and rekindle stalled reconciliation talks.