LONDON - A veteran British diplomat feels that greater effort at establishing relations with North Korea needs to be tried, but is not sure that South Korea’s new president will carry it out.

James Hoare, who served as Britain's Chargé d'affaires in Pyongyang after the two nations established diplomatic ties in 2000, told NK News that South Korea’s efforts at establishing diplomatic relations were insufficient compared to West Germany’s prior to reunification with the German Democratic Republic in 1990.