NSC discusses N. Korea situations, vows efforts to stop tensions

South Korea's top national security officials agreed Thursday, during their weekly meeting, to continue efforts to prevent inter-Korean tensions from escalating, Cheong Wa Dae said.

In the session of the National Security Council standing committee, members discussed the situations related to North Korea.

President Moon Jae-in and his security aides have been trying to figure out the background of the unpredictable communist neighbor's recent moves toward the South.

Earlier this month, it destroyed a joint liaison office in its border town of Kaesong, citing the Moon administration's failure to stop activists here from sending balloons filed with anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets across the border.

Pyongyang cut all inter-Korean communication lines and threatened further military actions, such as the redeployment of troops in some border regions home to now-suspended joint ventures between the two Koreas.

On Wednesday, however, the North made an abrupt announcement of a decision to suspend the plans.

The NSC members, meanwhile, also checked ongoing procedures for the return of some US Forces Korea bases, with a related environmental survey scheduled to finish within this year.

They "have decided to consult actively with the US side for smooth progress in the return process," Cheong Wa Dae said after the session chaired by Chung Eui-yong, director of the national security office. (Yonhap)