South Korean President Lee Myung-bak today called for dialogue with North Korea, apparently softening his hard-line stance on the country. Lee, in a meeting with the unification ministry at his office Cheong Wa Dae said, we should make efforts to achieve peace through inter-Korean dialogue while enhancing our defense posture at the same time. He said reunification with the Pyongyang might not be a thing of a distant future. Lee had reversed engagement policies of his liberal predecessors and resorted to a hard-line approach in dealing with Pyongyang.