A senior U.S. diplomat said on Thursday that the United States is ready to talk to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) "under the right circumstances" as State Secretary Hillary Clinton is scheduled to visit the Republic of Korea (ROK) next week for talks on security issues.

"The United States and South Korea have always maintained that we are prepared under the right circumstances, to sit down in a dialogue with North Korea," Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell said at a briefing on Clinton's upcoming visit.

But Campbell insisted that the DPRK reject provocative ways and embrace a path toward denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.