By Alex Jensen

SEOUL

South Korea suggested Friday that dialogue with North Korea could bring to an end sanctions imposed on Pyongyang after the 2010 sinking of a warship -- just as U.S. lawmakers moved to punish the North further.

Seoul and Washington are close allies, with nearly 30,000 U.S. military personnel stationed in South Korea, and their relationship frequently prompts outbursts of anger from Pyongyang.

The South has been trying to improve inter-Korean ties, with whom it never signed a peace treaty at the end of their 1950-53 conflict -- but Seoul has been left in limbo since making an offer of high-level talks in December.

Among the major stumbling blocks between the two sides has been North Korea’s refusal to take responsibility for the torpedoing of a South Korean warship in 2010.

Seoul’s May 24th Measure sanctions in the wake of the incident, which claimed the lives of 46 sailors, severely limited economic relations between the Koreas.

But on Friday, South Korean Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae suggested talks could “serve as a chance for lifting the May 24th Measure.”

Ryoo told a forum that the government had completed a “study” on the matter, according to local news agency Yonhap.

Pyongyang may well be swayed by the offer, as it has previously called for the removal of Seoul’s sanctions -- for example, by linking them with the South’s hopes for regular inter-Korean family reunions.

There are practical reasons for lifting the May 24th Measure, too -- Ryoo admitted as much with regard to a railway project involving both Koreas and Russia.

Meanwhile, a bill was submitted in the U.S. on Thursday local time calling for tighter economic sanctions against North Korea. The move came weeks after Pyongyang’s alleged cyber-attack on American movie studio Sony Pictures, and amid renewed nuclear weapon threats against Washington.

The move swiftly met with the disapproval of China, a traditional ally of the North’s.

Beijing’s foreign ministry spokesperson Hong Lei told reporters Friday that sanctions are not helpful in solving problems and “should not be used in international relations.”

The United Nations Security Council has in the past approved a series of penalties against North Korea, such as in 2013 after the reclusive state conducted its most recent nuclear test.