The negotiations had been on hold due in large part to the North's criticism of the annual military exercises conducted jointly by South Korea and the United States.

North Korea denounces the drills as a US rehearsal to attack the communist country, a charge Washington denies.

The South Korean government announced the agreement after a meeting at the border village of Panmunjom. The divided Koreas agreed to hold the high-level talks in late February or early March, the Unification Ministry said.

The last round of high-level military talks was in June 2004.

The two Koreas have remained technically in a state of conflict since the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended in a cease-fire, not a peace treaty. But their relations have warmed significantly since an unprecedented summit of their leaders in 2000.