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Writethru: DPRK's denuclearization not precondition for all ties: Seoul

Xinhua, July 14, 2015 Adjust font size:

Top South Korean policymaker in charge of inter-Korean relations said Tuesday that his country does not necessarily put the denuclearization of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) as an absolute precondition for improved relations.

Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo told foreign correspondents in Seoul that the government's DPRK policy does "not necessarily" put top priority on the DPRK's abandonment of its nuclear development as a precondition for all inter-Korean relations.

Even before the denuclearization, South Korea will continue private-level exchange and cooperation to lay ground for the reunification of the two sides and restore the family bond between people, the minister said.

Hong said South Korea's large-scale investment, like infrastructure development in the DPRK, has been restricted under the UN economic sanctions, noting that if the DPRK launches the denuclearization process, the country can support such development and encourage investments from the international community.

The minister showed a less rigid attitude toward the lifting of the so-called May 24 sanctions, imposed in 2010 by South Korea against the DPRK after the Cheonan warship sinking that claimed 46 lives of South Korean soldiers. "The government does not necessarily demand North Korea (DPRK)'s apology (for the battleship sinking incident) first to resolve all issues," Hong said, adding that all inter-Korean issues should be resolved " through dialogue."

The May 24 measures, which ban all inter-Korean economic cooperation except the Kaesong industrial complex, came after the South Korean Navy corvette Cheonan sank in waters near the disputed maritime border in March 2010.

Seoul claimed that its battleship was sunken by the DPRK's torpedo attack, but Pyongyang has repeatedly denied its involvement. South Korea had maintained a position that the sanctions would not be lifted unless Pyongyang takes responsible actions.

Hong urged the DPRK to come out to the dialogue table to resolve all issues, including the sanctions, noting that the May 24 sanctions were not meant to block trade between the two Koreas, but to develop inter-Korean ties in a stable way over the long run. Endi