Seoul (AFP) - North Korea on Wednesday abruptly cancelled an invitation to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to the isolated state, his spokesman said.

"Early this morning, the authorities of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) informed us, through their diplomatic channels, that they were reversing their decision for me to visit the Kaesong Industrial Complex", Ban was quoted as saying at a seminar in Seoul by his spokesman Stephane Dujarric.