Asia-Pacific

ROK to think over tourism talks with DPRK

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-10-12 15:08

SEOUL - Republic of Korea (ROK) told the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to wait until it decides on details of the proposed talks over a suspended cross-border tour program, the unification ministry here said Tuesday.

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The message delivered Tuesday practically means the two Koreas cannot hold the talks on October 15 in the border town of Kaesong as previously suggested by the DPRK.

Tours to Mount Kumgang, launched in 1998, was halted in 2008 soon after a tragic shooting death of a ROK female tourist. Tours to the border town of Kaesong was also suspended in the same year, rapidly souring inter-Korean ties.

The former wartime rivals held working-level talks earlier this year to discuss reopening the tour programs but failed to narrow differences on major issues, including launching a thorough investigation to get to the bottom of the shooting incident.

The DPRK confiscated ROK assets at a resort on the mountain to protest Seoul's refusal to resume the lucrative tours, once a rare source of hard cash.

Meanwhile, Seoul and Pyongyang are scheduled later this month to hold Red Cross talks and reunions for families divided by the civil war decades ago, which observers say will bring the estranged neighbors a bit closer.