North Korea cancels talks with South

North Korea has called off Cabinet-level talks with South Korea hours before they were to begin.

The move has prompting speculation the North is upset by tougher talk from the new US administration.

North Korean chief delegate Jon Kum Jin did not give a reason for the cancellation. There was no offer by North Korea to reschedule the talks.

"Considering various circumstances, we cannot participate in today's meeting," the South Korean government quoted Jon as saying in a telephone message relayed to his South Korean counterpart, Unification Minister Park Jae-kyu.

Park expressed strong regret and urged that the Cabinet-level talks - the fifth round since an inter-Korean summit in June - be held as soon as possible, his ministry said in a statement.

The cancellation of the talks is a setback to efforts to reunite family members from both sides who were separated during or before the 1950-53 Korean War.

Three temporary reunions of relatives have been held in the past year.

"I just hope North Korea won't back out completely. I've waited 50 years. I don't mind waiting a little bit more," said 67-year-old Kim Hong-suk, who planned to send a letter to a nephew in the North under a Red Cross-run exchange on March 15.