South Korean President Lee Myung-bak Wednesday called for dialogue with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), apparently softening his hard-line stance on the country.

"We should make efforts to achieve peace through inter-Korean dialogue while enhancing our defense posture at the same time," Lee said in a meeting with the unification ministry at his office Cheong Wa Dae.

Reunification with the DPRK might not be a thing of a distant future, Lee said, calling on the unification ministry, which overseas inter-Korean affairs, to make efforts to help change the public's negative views about potential reunification.

Lee had reversed engagement policies of his liberal predecessors and resorted to a hard-line approach in dealing with Pyongyang.