hankyoreh

South Korean facilities at the Mt. Kumgang tourism region released by the Unification Ministry on Oct. 29. (provided by the Ministry of Unification)

North Korea has rejected a proposal from the South to holding working-level talks about developing tourism at Mt. Kumgang. In its message on Oct. 29, Pyongyang stuck to its position that the matter should be discussed “through the exchanging of documents.” This also increases the chances of a monkey wrench being thrown into Seoul’s plan to use the tourism issue as an opportunity to restore inter-Korean economic cooperation. We are deeply dismayed by North Korea’s insistence on a document-based approach, and we hope North Korea belatedly agrees to face-to-face talks.

The North’s message reportedly said there was “no need for separate working-level talks.” This suggests its position is that only the matter of demolishing structures at Mt. Kumgang needs to be discussed, and that there is no point in expanding the discussion to other matters. Seoul’s counterproposal the day before to hold discussions on ideas for resuming and promoting tourism at Mt. Kumgang, including a proposal made by the North, was met only with a frosty response.

For now, there’s no way of knowing whether Pyongyang’s stance is set in stone or subject to change. But if it does carry on insisting that the structures in question be demolished, that will mean a brick wall for Seoul’s idea of turning the demolition crisis into a resumption opportunity. Under the circumstances, any “creative solutions” the South comes out with are unlikely to lead to a breakthrough. Inter-Korean relations also appear poised for an even deeper slide.

If this situation is to be prevented from deteriorating further, the North is going to need to show a belated willingness to accept the South’s proposal. Indeed, the Mt. Kumgang facilities in question are reportedly in need of full-scale renovation, repairs, and reconstruction after being neglected for so long. If the opportunity can be used to pave the way for the two sides to join in turning the Mt. Kumgang tourism project into a new model of inter-Korean economic cooperation, that would be useful for South and North Korea alike. North Korea has no cause for drawing the curtain closed from the get-go.

Pyongyang’s insistence on a document-based approach turns the Mt. Kumgang tourism issue into a much more vexing problem to solve. Getting tourism started again under the circumstances will require not only coming up with bright ideas for avoiding international sanctions, but also winning over the North amid its insistence on demolishing the structures. None of this will be easy. But the difficulty of the path ahead is no reason for simply giving up. For a start, we need to leave the possibility for talks between authorities open as we go to work finding an alternative. The souring of inter-Korean relations is not something new; it has been going on since the North Korea-US summit collapse in Hanoi, and the Mt. Kumgang demolition issue is an extension of that. In that sense, it may be worth considering an even bolder communication approach such as holding senior-level talks or sending a special envoy.

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]