EU foreign ministers agreed in principle Monday to send a diplomatic mission to North Korea to help resolve a nuclear stand-off between the Stalinist country and the United States, officials said.

"In principle, there is an agreement to send a mission but no date has been decided," said a source with the European Union's Greek presidency.

Diplomats said the EU delegation was likely to be led by foreign affairs high representative Javier Solana, who "has received a formal invitation from the North Koreans" to head to Pyongyang, according to one diplomat.

Solana was in talks Monday with the EU foreign ministers on the modalities of the proposed trip, officials said, adding that Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou might also take part.

"There was an agreement to let the Greek presidency, if it saw fit, to organize such a mission," said an EU official, adding that both North and South Korea were eager to see the Union play a role in defusing tensions with the United States.

"We don't pretend to be a major player," the official said, "but the North Koreans see us as a neutral player and there has also been a whole range of contacts with South Korea." The EU would press North Korea to respect its international commitments, diplomats said.

"There is a consensus that North Korea has to resume its international obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)," said one.

"It's very hard to help North Korea if it won't help itself," she added, while stressing the EU would continue to help North Korea's starving population. "Humanitarian aid is non-political." Tensions have soared over North Korea's decision to reactivate a mothballed nuclear plant capable of producing weapons-grade plutonium and to withdraw from the NPT, which it announced earlier this month - Sapa-AFP