By Kim Young-jin
South and North Korea restored their aviation hotline Monday, almost five months after it was severed by the North in the tense aftermath of the sinking of a South Korean warship.
The North proposed the move, which connects the main airports in each country, Saturday through a satellite communication link, Unification Ministry spokesman Chun Hae-sung told reporters. A successful test call was put through Monday morning.
Pyongyang disabled the line in May after the South announced a package of country-specific sanctions over the March 26 sinking of the warship, Cheonan. Seoul and its allies blame the attack, which killed 46 sailors, on a North Korean torpedo, a claim Pyongyang denies.
The official said the North gave no explanation for wanting to reopen the channel.
South Korean airliners have been prohibited from using North Korean airspace, since the May disconnect. However, the two countries have held satellite communication in regards to foreign commercial aircraft doing so.
The reestablishment of the line comes as the resumption of talks on the North’s denuclearization depends on whether the two Koreas can reduce peninsular tension.
South Korea and the United States maintain the stance that the six-party talks cannot be resumed until inter-Korean animosity abates and the North proves its genuine intent to denuclearize.
It was not clear whether the move was the latest in a series of conciliatory gestures by the North, which has also included the reopening of reunions of families separated by the Korean War (1950-53). The reunions are slated for later this month.
On Saturday, the North reiterated through its state-run media its willingness to comply with a denuclearization agreement it made under the six-party framework, which also includes Japan, Russia and host China.
But it also renewed last week its threat to fire on South Korean sites if they are used to fly anti-Pyongyang leaflets into the North.
In an interview with a South Korean daily published Monday, Unification Minister Hyun In-taek expressed doubt over the North’s charm offensive but left the door open for high-level talks if it shows a genuine desire for a peaceful peninsula.
Ministry official Chun added that Red Cross officials from both sides met at the North’s border town of Gaeseong to exchange the names of candidates for the upcoming family reunions.