The South Korean leader was informed before his speech to Parliament that a soldier had shot dead the woman who strayed into a restricted area at Mount Kumgang, an aide said.

But the new conservative leader, who is reviled by Pyongyang, went ahead with his proposal for talks on ways to implement summit agreements reached by his predecessors.

Mr Lee also offered to help alleviate the communist state's acute food shortages. His offer of dialogue on summit pacts marked a clear departure from his initial tougher policy.

Mr Lee had campaigned on, among other things, a hawkish policy towards the North, saying that he would scrutinise bilateral cooperation agreements reached in 2000 and last year, to see if they were worth implementing.

His hard line had led Pyongyang to term him a 'traitor' and 'US sycophant' and to cut off official contacts.

'Full dialogue between the two Koreas must resume,' Mr Lee said yesterday.

His government 'is willing to engage in serious consultations on how to implement the inter-Korean agreements made so far', including summit pacts reached in 2000 and 2007.

Mr Lee has previously said he would study whether to carry out joint economic projects agreed with Pyongyang based on their feasibility and cost.

He had also linked major economic aid to the North to progress in scrapping its nuclear programmes.

Last weekend, he restated his willingness to meet the North's leader Kim Jong Il 'as many times as I can' for genuine dialogue to improve relations.

But the North said it was 'preposterous' for him to make such a suggestion when he had ignored 'important declarations' at previous summits.

Pyongyang has also rebuffed Seoul's offers of food aid despite serious food shortages this year.

Mr Lee said Seoul 'is ready to cooperate in efforts to help relieve the food shortage in the North as well as alleviate the pain of the North Korean people'.

He stressed that the North's denuclearisation is his highest priority and welcomed 'important and substantive progress' made in six-nation negotiations. A new round of six-party talks was under way yesterday in Beijing.

'As the denuclearisation process progresses, substantial cooperation between the two Koreas will be rejuvenated,' Mr Lee said.

But Mr Lee soon came under fire for making the gesture despite knowing that a North Korean soldier had shot dead a South Korean tourist.

Mr Lee Dong Kwan, the presidential spokesman, said the leader was informed of the shooting incident at around noon, two hours ahead of his speech to Parliament.

There was no official response from the North to Mr Lee's offer.

It was also unclear what impact, if any, yesterday's shooting incident at the Mount Kumgang resort would have on North Korean nuclear disarmament talks being held in Beijing.

The six-nation talks are focused on trying to reach an agreement over how to verify Pyongyang's declaration of its nuclear programmes delivered last month.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, ASSOCIATED PRESS