'North won't talk with South unless issues are resolved'

By Kim Bo-eun

A high-level North Korean official said Thursday that it would be difficult to continue talks with the South unless issues that led to the cancellation of previous high-level negotiations were resolved.

“The direction of inter-Korean relations will depend on the South's actions,” Ri Son-gwon, chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, was cited as telling a Korean Central News Agency reporter, according to the state agency.

This appears to be a response to the unification ministry's notification to the North a day earlier, in which it expressed regret over the postponement of the high-level talks, and urged the North to return to the table.

“The reckless actions that go against the flow of improvements in inter-Korean relations are going beyond limits,” Ri said.

Pyongyang cancelled the high-level inter-Korean meeting that was arranged to take place Wednesday to discuss carrying out agreements reached at the inter-Korean summit, citing the ongoing annual joint air force exercises between South Korea and the U.S.

The regime declared the drills went against the Panmunjeom Declaration reached at the April 27 summit, which pledged to achieve peace on the Korean Peninsula.

“The regime has taken a firm measure of indefinitely postponing high-level inter-Korean talks until the South takes responsible measures,” Ri said.