N.Korea says inter-Korean hotlines will be restored on Monday -KCNA

FILE PHOTO: A North Korea flag flutters next to concertina wire at the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia March 9, 2017. REUTERS/Edgar Su

SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korea said on Monday it will restore severed inter-Korean hotlines starting Monday but urged South Korea to step up efforts to improve relations, state media KCNA reported.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un expressed his willingness last week to reactivate the hotlines https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/nkoreas-kim-expresses-willingness-restore-inter-korean-hotline-kcna-2021-09-29, which North Korea cut off in early August https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/nkorea-says-us-skorea-face-security-threats-with-military-drills-2021-08-09 in protest against joint South Korea-U.S. military exercises, just days after reopening them for the first time in a year.