The contacts between North Korea and South Korea were resumed again over the weekend within the talks over fertilizer supplies from the South.

The two Koreas plan to improve relations after a halt of almost a year, the officials from the two sides said. South Korea said it plans to resume minister level talks with the North in an attempt to resolve the dispute over nuclear weapons. Earlier, the talks between the North and the South were scheduled to be held in August 2004.

The South Korean and North Korean officials are expected to meet Monday in Kaesong. The meeting was initially aimed at improving bilateral ties between two countries.

The delegation from South Korea will be headed by Vice Minister Rhee Bong-jo from the Unification Ministry. The North is expected to be represented by Kim Man-gil, deputy director of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland.

If the two countries succeed in their negotiations, South Korea will provide 200,000 to 300,000 tons of fertilizers to the North. South Korea also plans to push North Korea to multilateral talks on nuclear weapons that were demanded by the US, EU and United Nations.

The fertilizer will probably be transported by a rail line that was reconnected last year.