By Na Jeong-ju, Lee Tae-hoon
Staff Reporter
Cheong Wa Dae denied media reports Wednesday that President Lee Myung-bak discussed the release of detained South Korean fishermen when he met with North Korean delegates at Cheong Wa Dae Aug. 24.
The delegation, led by Kim Ki-nam, secretary of the North's ruling Workers Party, was visiting Seoul to deliver North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's condolences to the family of the late former President Kim Dae-jung.
During the meeting with Lee, the delegates said the North was willing to release the fishermen any time and asked Lee to set the date for their release.
Lee answered that the North should not behave as if it was doing a favor to the South, asking it to handle the matter in accordance with international laws, some dailies reported, citing an unnamed source.
Lee also asked the delegates to deliver his message to North Korean leader Kim that his North Korea policy is totally different from those of past South Korean leaders.
``I'm ready to help the North rebuild the economy if it abandons its nuclear program, but won't provide unconditional aid as my liberal predecessors did for a decade,'' Lee was quoted as saying. ``I won't resort to confrontational measures unconditionally, either.''
The presidential office rebuffed the reports as being untrue, saying the fishermen's release was not discussed.
Right after the meeting, which lasted about a half hour, the office issued a brief statement saying Lee told the North Koreans to convey his ``consistent and firm'' principles on North Korea to Kim Jong-il, without elaborating on what was discussed.
It also refused to mention whether the North Korean leader offered to meet with President Lee.
After the meeting, North Korea released the four South Korean fishermen it had detained for a month for intruding into its territorial waters. The fishermen said later their boat strayed across the border by mistake.
Unification Minister Hyun Intaek said North Korea's recent conciliatory gestures have thawed icy inter-Korean relations, but that doesn't signify any fundamental change in Pyongyang's stance on its nuclear program, a top South Korean official said Wednesday.
``The North has lifted restrictive measures on inter-Korean ties, but questions still linger on whether it is willing to embrace fundamental changes,'' Unification Minister Hyun In-taek said at the Forum of National Integration in Seoul. The forum was organized by lawmakers of the governing Grand National Party.
The communist regime has yet to show any sign of abandoning its nuclear ambitions, he said.
In April, North Korea quit the six-party talks designed to resolve the nuclear issue, announcing that it would reverse the disarmament process and restart its Yongbyon nuclear facilities.
The North, however, has made friendly overtures to the South since July. It has lifted inter-Korean border traffic restrictions, returned four South Korean crewmen detained in the North and agreed to hold reunions for families separated by the Korean War around the upcoming Chuseok or Korean Thanksgiving Day holiday at the Mt. Geumgang resort in North Korea. Chuseok falls on Oct. 3.
Despite the growing mood for rapprochement, Minister Hyun said that he is skeptical a breakthrough will be made over the nuclear issue.
He said the North's recent overtures are ``merely tactical changes,'' which have helped to ``bring inter-Korea relations back to square one.''
Touching on his meeting in Seoul with a North Korean delegate sent to pay respects to the late former President Kim Dae-Jung, Hyun said that the North's next moves will be critical in shaping the future of inter-Korean relations
``Though it bore significance for being the first high-ranking officials to visit the South (since President Lee Myung-bak's inauguration in February last year), it was just a small first step. Whether this first step will lead to a great development depends on North Korea,'' the minister said.
He emphasized that the nuclear issue cannot be overlooked.
``As the North Korean nuclear issue is of foremost importance, I will make efforts to resolve the problem. Our North Korea policy should be based on consensus of the people and it will be meaningless without it.''