President Barack Obama on Sunday turned down North Korea's unusual proposal to suspend nuclear tests if U.S. stops joint military exercises with South Korea.

"We don't take seriously a promise to simply halt until the next time they decide to do a test these kinds of activities," Obama said in a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Hannover. 

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"What we've said consistently is that if North Korea shows seriousness in denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, then we'll be prepared to enter into some serious conversations with them about reducing tensions and our approach to protecting our allies in the region," Obama added.

"But that's not something that happens based on a press release in the wake of a series of provocative behaviors. They're going to have to do better than that."

Obama's remarks came a day after North Korean foreign minister Ri Su-yong put forward a surprising proposal to Washington on the country's nuclear program. Su-yong said in a rare interview on Saturday that Pyongyang will halt nuclear tests if the U.S. agree to stop its annual military exercises with South Korea.

"It is really crucial for the United States government to withdraw its hostile policy against the Democratic People' Republic of Korea or DPRK ( official name of N Korea) and as an expression of this stop the military exercises, war exercises, in the Korean Peninsula. Then we will respond likewise," the North Korean official told Associated Press.

"If we continue on this path of confrontation, this will lead to very catastrophic results, not only for the two countries but for the whole entire world as well."

International sanctions and condemnation failed to stop North Korea's nuclear programme. The isolated Asian country  reportedly test fired a ballistic missile from an underwater platform off its eastern coast on Saturday.

TagsNorth Korea, nuclear, Obama, South Korea, US