North Korea remained silent over the "final talks" proposal for reopening a suspended inter-Korean factory park on Monday, the government said, a day after Seoul warned it is losing patience with Pyongyang's reticence.
The Ministry of Unification, which handles all inter-Korean affairs, said the communist country did not send any message to the South regarding the dialogue offer when the first daily contact was made at 9 a.m. via the inter-Korean communications line that runs through the neutral truce village of Panmunjom.
The silence comes as Seoul on Sunday again called on Pyongyang to make known its position on the Gaeseong Industrial Complex.
Ministry spokesman Kim Hyung-suk said if the North views the factory park, located in the North, as a key part of South-North Korean cooperation, it must end the silence and take responsible action through words and deeds.
"The North must take steps like paying for damages and other measures brought on by their unilateral actions, and should realize that the patience of the South Korean people is nearing its limit," he stressed.
The statement follows Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae calls for final talks on July 28 after six rounds of working-level negotiations ended without the two Koreas reaching an agreement on preconditions for resuming operations at the complex, the last remaining symbol of South-North rapprochement.
The two sides have made no headway on the crucial issue of safeguards to prevent another work stoppage at the industrial park in the North Korean border town. South Korea has insisted that Pyongyang must give solid guarantees that it will not take steps to close the complex again, while the North rejected such demands and called for the park's immediate resumption. Pyongyang also warned that its military may take control of the complex if no understanding is reached.
All operations at Gaeseong came to a screeching halt in early April after the North unilaterally pulled its workers from the complex amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. The shutdown of Gaeseong, which first started churning out products in late 2004, has cost the 123 South Korean companies with factories in the park upwards of 1.05 trillion won (US$934 million).
Related to the lack of response and the latest warning made over the weekend, there is growing speculation that the South will soon take "grave" measures. Policymakers have said it is not the time to elaborate on what actions will be taken but cutting off all power and water to the complex is an option. This can be followed by measures that could lead to the eventual closure of the park. (Yonhap News)
