North Korea asked South Korea Saturday to abandon its hard-line policy toward its communist neighbor, indicating that the recent appointment in Seoul of a new Cabinet minister in charge of cross-border relations may be a new starting point, according to Yonhap news agency. In a partial Cabinet shakeup last week, President Lee Myung-bak named his former chief of staff, Yu Woo-ik, to replace Hyun Ik-taek as unification minister. Hyun, a former university professor, has been known for his hawkish stance on the North.