ROK can talk with DPRK about sanctions, tour resumption

SEOUL -- Republic of Korea's  (ROK) Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae said Wednesday that the country can talk with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) about economic sanctions and resumption of tour to Mount Kumgang during the upcoming senior-level inter-Korean dialogue.

"The May 24 measures and Mount Kumgang tour can be discussed if the high-level contact is held. All can be on the dialogue table," Ryoo said during a parliamentary audit of the unification ministry. He added that it would be important for the two Koreas to overcome the issues through dialogue.

The DPRK has demanded the lifting of the so-called May 24 sanctions imposed by the ROK in 2010 when the  ROK Navy corvette Cheonan sank in waters near the disputed western sea border. It has since banned all inter-Korean exchanges except for the Kaesong industrial zone in the DPRK's border town and some humanitarian aid programs.

Opposition lawmakers called for the lifting of the sanctions or an expansion in inter-Korean exchanges that could mean a "back- door" lifting, saying such actions would be a key to peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Rep. Kim Sung Gon of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy even said that it might be hard to "predicate 100 percent" that the warship sinking was caused by the DPRK though he said it had a high probability. He noted other scenarios should " not be ruled out completely" given mixed views of the international community on it.

The ROK has insisted that the Cheonan warship sinking, which claimed 46 lives of its soldiers, was caused by a DPRK's torpedo attack, but Pyongyang repeatedly denied its involvement in the accident.

Even some ruling party lawmakers asked the government to ease or actually lift the May 24 sanctions to enhance relations between the two Koreas. Rep. Kim Tae-ho of the ruling Saenuri Party said that President Park Geun-hye's Dresden Declaration, which focuses on the DPRK's infrastructure development, could be seen as another name of the lifting of the May 24 measures.

Meanwhile, Pyongyang also has called for resuming tours to the Mount Kumgang resort in the DPRK's southeast coast. The tour, launched in 1998, was halted in July 2008 when a ROK female tourist was shot dead by a DPRK solider after venturing into an off-limit area.

Calls for the lifting came after Hwang Pyong So, DPRK's second- in-command, visited the ROK on Saturday to attend the closing ceremony of the Incheon Asian Games. Hwang was accompanied by Choe Ryong Hae and Kim Yang Gon, secretaries of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea.

During the visit, the three high-ranking DPRK officials agreed to hold the second round of high-level talks with the ROK between late October and early November. Seoul and Pyongyang held the vice ministerial-level talks in mid-February, the first such dialogue since President Park Geun-hye took office in February 2013.

Their surprise visit boosted hopes for a reconciliatory mood on the Korean Peninsula, but Minister Ryoo took a cautious stance on excessive expectations.

Ryoo said the visit itself would neither mean a change in ROK's position on the issues, including sanctions and the Mount Kumgang tour, nor a change in its principle on the DPRK policy, though he said the visit could act as an opportunity for improving inter-Korean relations.

He said it needs to take into account why the sanctions were taken, stressing the need for the DPRK's responsible actions. But, he noted the May 24 sanctions and the Mount Kumgang tour are an issue on inter-Korean relations, adding it would be necessary for the two Koreas to put heads together to find a solution.

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