N. Korea Agrees to End Attempts to Topple South

SEOUL — North Korea, whose 1950 invasion of South Korea started a war that has never formally ended, agreed Thursday to stop trying to overthrow its neighbor and accepted a framework for seeking reconciliation, nonaggression and cooperation.

Although specific language remains to be worked out, North Korea also pledged to renounce terrorism and to work toward uniting millions of Koreans separated since the Korean Peninsula was divided after World War II.

Officials of both sides hailed the agreement as historic and expressed hope for more progress at the next round of high-level talks in Seoul in December.

The agreement came in talks held in North Korea’s capital, Pyongyang, between the prime ministers of the two Koreas, which have been bitterly divided since 1945.

“Precious momentum for a breakthrough in the deadlocked talks has been generated,” South Korean Prime Minister Chung Won Shik said at a dinner Thursday, according to South Korean pool reports.

Chung and his North Korean counterpart, Yon Hyong Muk, presided over two negotiating sessions. The breakthrough came at an unscheduled working meeting early Thursday in which both sides agreed to a framework and some key items for a comprehensive accord on easing tensions.