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| Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae speaks during a press conference in Seoul, Thursday. / Yonhap |
Responding to N. Korean offer, South asks for June 12 meeting here
By Kang Seung-woo
South Korea proposed holding ministers' talks with North Korea next week in Seoul, Thursday, on the reopening of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex and Mt. Geumgang tours.
The proposal was made seven hours after the North surprisingly offered a working-level meeting with the South. The North also offered to let Seoul decide the venue and date at its convenience.
We are making a counterproposal and asking the North to hold inter-Korean ministerial-level talks on June 12 in Seoul in order to resolve issues regarding the Gaeseong Industrial Complex, the Mt. Geumgang resort and separated families, Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae said at a press conference.
We positively view the North's acceptance today of what our government has consistently proposed, the minister said.
The South has repeatedly called for talks over the resumption of the stalled inter-Korean commercial project the last remaining symbol of inter-Korean economic cooperation since Pyongyang closed the industrial park in April.
Responding to the North's willingness to restore a cross-border official hotline that runs through the truce village of Panmunjeom, Ryoo said he expected the North to restart communication soon in order to hold preparatory negotiations for next week's talks.
However, he did not specify the agenda.
In the morning, the North called for working-level government talks to normalize a few issues including Gaeseong, and Seoul positively welcomed the offer that comes on the heels of strong popular support for President Park's principled carrot-and-stick policy towards Pyongyang confirmed by the latest polls. Park had said through Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se that Seoul is not interested in talks for talks sake with the North.
We propose holding talks between the authorities of the North and South for the normalization of the Gaeseong complex and the reopening of tours to Mt. Geumgang on the occasion of the anniversary of the June 15 joint declaration, the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea said in a statement, carried by the (North) Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The committee is the North s agency in charge of inter-Korean relations.
The June 15 declaration refers to the five main provisions of a 2000 summit between then President Kim Dae-jung and the North's Kim Jong-il.
Following the United Nations sanctions over its third nuclear test and joint South Korean-U.S. military drills, Pyongyang cut off the Red Cross link at the border between the two Koreas and other military communication channels near the Yellow Sea in March. It also stopped all access to Gaeseong on April 3, and subsequently withdrew all 53,000 North Korean workers employed by the 123 South Korean firms operating there on April 9.
In retaliation, last month President Park pulled all personnel from the joint industrial park.
The cross-border tour to the North's east coast was suspended in 2008 after a female South Korean tourist was shot dead by a North Korean guard.
Pyongyang also said, Humanitarian issues such as the reunion of separated families and their relatives can be discussed at the talks, if necessary.
Since the joint military exercises ended in April, there has been no sign of the North re-escalating tensions.
In addition, the young North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, recently dispatched his special envoy Choe Ryong-hae to China, where he said the North was interested in rejoining the stalled six-party talks.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Unification responded positively and expressed hope that working-level government talks can allow trust building to move forward.
South Korea is considering the proposal in a positive light and hopes talks will result in trust between the two sides, spokesman Kim Hyung-seok said in a statement.
Details including the schedule and topics for the talks will be announced in the coming days.
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