South Korea and the United States will work even more closely together to reunify the two Koreas, Seoul's point man on Pyongyang said Monday.

Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo made the remark during an address at a security conference, saying the South Korea-U.S. alliance is "key" to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.

"South Korea and the U.S. will work even more closely together to defend the values important to achieving a peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula, such as human rights, peace and the environment," he said.

Hong also called on the international community to urge North Korea with one voice to give up its nuclear weapons program and take the path to peace and mutual development. (Yonhap)