Seoul - North Korea accepted a proposal to meet Friday with the US-led UN Command on reducing tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Pyongyang agreed Thursday to the proposal for the meeting of generals from both sides after consultations between officers of North Korea and the UN force at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom, the South Korean-based UN Command said.

The agreement came after Monday's first meeting between high-ranking officers of the North's Korean People's Army and the UN force in nearly seven years. That meeting was called on the initiative of North Korea.

"The purpose of the meetings is to discuss practical armistice-related issues, reaffirm commitment to the general officer forum and reduce tension on the Korean Peninsula," the UN Command said.

The UN Command has had the task since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War to monitor the ceasefire that ended the conflict. No peace treaty was ever signed, leaving the two Koreas still technically at war.

South Korea said the North used Monday's meeting to criticize annual military exercises scheduled for this month between the United States and South Korea. Pyongyang has accused both Washington and Seoul of using the manoeuvres set to begin Monday and last through March 20 to prepare for war against the North.

Tensions between the two Korean capitals have risen substantially this year. North Korea has repeatedly threatened the South with destruction while accusing its government of pursuing a confrontational policy.

The South said North Korea has been preparing for weeks to test-fire an intercontinental ballistic missile while North Korea said it was readying a satellite launch. (dpa)