Seoul exploring ways to resume talks with North Korea
South Korea continues to search for ways to resume dialogue with North Korea ahead of the U.S.-North Korea summit, an official from Seoul's presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Friday, apparently suggesting the North's recent suspension of inter-Korean dialogue may not be meant to be anything permanent.
On Wednesday, the North said it was indefinitely suspending high-level inter-Korean talks that were set to be held the same day, citing the recently launched Max Thunder joint military exercise of South Korean and the United States.
On Thursday, Ri Son-gwon, chairman of the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Country, which is in charge of inter-Korean affairs, said it will "never be easy to sit face to face again with the present regime of South Korea" unless the South changes its behavior.
Cheong Wa Dae officials insisted the suspension may be temporary.
"There has been no mention of completely calling off the dialogue. Ri's remarks too said it will not be easy, not that they will not hold talks," an official said while speaking on the condition of anonymity.
The official added there may also be other reasons or agendas for the recent suspension of inter-Korean dialogue by the communist state, possibly including the upcoming summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, scheduled to be held in Singapore on June 12.
Seoul and its President Moon Jae-in have been and continue to be working as a broker between Washington and Pyongyang that helped arrange the unprecedented U.S.-North Korea summit in the first place.
The North and the U.S. recently announced the time and location of what will be their first-ever bilateral summit but have since been in what many experts here have called a tug of war to take the upper hand in the upcoming negotiations apparently aimed at ridding the North of its nuclear ambitions.
White House National Security Advisor John Bolton has repeatedly said there should be no guarantee of benefits to the North until the communist state completely, verifiably and irreversibly dismantles its nuclear program.
North Korea's First Vice Minister Kim Kye-gwan said Wednesday that it is "absolutely absurd" to demand the so-called Libya model denuclearization process for his country, and also expressed a "feeling of repugnance" toward Bolton.
With the suspension of dialogue between the two Koreas and the ongoing argument between the U.S. and the North, many are beginning to ask when South Korean President Moon Jae-in will put his personal ties with the North Korean leader, forged at their historic summit last month, to test.
The divided Koreas set up a direct communication hotline between the offices of their leaders shortly before the latest inter-Korean summit held April 27.
Cheong Wa Dae officials said the hotline has yet to be used by the leaders, but that it will likely be before the U.S.-North Korea summit.
The call, if made, may not only be aimed at removing the fresh strain on inter-Korean ties but also at brokering a deal between the U.S. and the North one last time before the U.S.-North Korea summit.
Moon is set to visit Washington next week for bilateral talks with Trump on Tuesday (Washington time).
Trump on Thursday ruled out the Libya model for North Korea. Instead, he insisted Kim would be very happy if they reached a deal he had in mind when they meet next month in Singapore. (Yonhap)