Yi Whan-woo is a Korea Times journalist primarily covering finance. He writes in-depth articles on macroeconomy and financial markets and previously covered sports, politics, diplomacy and inter-Korean affairs, among others. Feel free to contact him at yistory@koreatimes.co.kr.
Talks with Pyongyang may soon resume
By Yi Whan-woo
Hints are multiplying that talks with North Korea will resume soon.
The first, inter-Korean high-level talks may be a precursor to more talks to come.
On Thursday, the Ministry of Unification urged Pyongyang to “respect the agreement made between the two Koreas” on Oct. 4.
It referred to a deal reached during a surprise visit of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s three close confidants ― Hwang Pyong-so, Choe Ryong-hae and Kim Yang-gon ― to South Korea to attend the closing ceremony of the Incheon Asian Games.
A government source also said Thursday that the North was invited to join the Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative Forum to be held in Seoul from Oct. 28 to 30.
It will be hosted by the Korea National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA), which is under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to discuss security, nuclear safety and other regional issues in Northeast Asia.
The forum will bring all members of the six-party talks, including Seoul, Washington, Beijing, Tokyo and Moscow, if Pyongyang accepts South Korea’s invitation. The six-party talks are aimed at resolving the North’s nuclear programs peacefully.
The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of Pyongyang’s ruling Workers’ Party, said Thursday that the two Koreas should be “geared toward promoting reconciliation and harmony.”
The news came after the Korean Central News Agency (KNCA), Pyongyang’s other state-controlled media, said Wednesday “there is no reason for not holding the second round of inter-Korean talks as agreed.”
The Rodong Sinmun’s report also was released after the Ministry of National Defense dismantled a Christmas tree tower at the 2nd Division of the Marine Corps in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province.
Set up on Aegibong Hill in 1971, the 18-meter tall tower has been a recurring source of diplomatic and military tension with North Korea. As a Christmas ritual, the inter-Korean border unit covered the tower with colorful lights every winter, which was seen as part of propaganda efforts against the impoverished regime that suffers from shortages of electricity supply.
Worthy of note were two other developments.
The North released Jeffrey Edwards Fowle, one of three Americans detained in North Korea, saying this was done because of “repeated” requests by U.S. President Barack Obama. Fowle was returned home on a U.S. government plane trip be reunited with his family.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry mentioned a drawdown of the U.S. military presence in Asia, a remark some analysts see as indicative of a strong U.S. willingness to get talks with the North going. However, Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se quickly dismissed the remarks as something that can’t happen immediately.