The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has indicated its desire to improve relations with the United States, a senior U.S. government official said on Sunday.

Officials of the DPRK "have indicated that they would like a new relation, a better relation with the United States" during the meeting between former U.S. President Bill Clinton and DPRK top leader Kim Jong-Il on Tuesday, U.S. National Security Adviser James Jones told Fox News.

The DPRK has been eager to hold bilateral talks with the United States, Jones said, adding that the Obama administration "would be happy to do that if in fact they would rejoin" the six party talks.

Clinton had a 20-hour visit to Pyongyang on Aug. 4, which the White House declined to comment, saying it was a "solely private" mission to secure the release of two American journalists.

After a high-profile meeting between Clinton and Kim, the two journalists were announced free by Pyongyang.

According to the DPRK official KCNA news agency, Kim and Clinton had talks on improving bilateral relations. But Obama administration officials said Clinton did not discuss any issues beyond the journalists' release.

(Xinhua News Agency August 10, 2009)