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By Ahn Chang-hyun, Staff Writer

Signs of change are making themselves evident in the Lee Myung-bak administration's North Korea policy following Kim Jong-il's death.

Observers are suggesting inter-Korean relations might resume after being all but totally cut off in the wake of last year's Cheonan sinking and artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island.

During a meeting Thursday morning at the Cheong Wa Dae with Grand National Party emergency countermeasures committee chairwoman Park Geun-hye and Unified Democratic Party co-president Won Hye-young, Lee said there was "some room for flexibility in our North Korean relations in the future."

In particular, Cheong Wa Dae senior secretary for public relations Choe Kuem-nak reported Lee as saying that the measures taken by Seoul following Kim's death were "intended to show North Korea that we fundamentally do not view them with hostility" and that "perhaps North Korea never thought we would do this much." The remarks reflect a clear message that Seoul has no intention of provoking or destabilizing North Korea.

Previously, the government took steps to postpone the lighting of a Christmas tree on the border with North Korea.

The President's message indicates the possibility of making headway in inter-Korean relations with a flexible response from Seoul after the new regime is established around Workers' Party of Korea Central Military Commission vice chairman Kim Jong-un.

The approach shows a world of difference from that seen after the Cheonan and Yeonpyeong Island episodes. On May 24 of last year, Lee gave a special speech at the War Memorial of Korea in Seoul in connection with the Cheonan sinking, saying that North Korea "will pay the price for its actions." All cooperation and exchange between North and South Korea was subsequently halted, with the exception of the Kaesong Industrial Complex.

Observers said the turnaround from Seoul likely emerged from a combination of the political judgment that it could no longer stand by while inter-Korean relations went downhill, and the exit of difficult adversary Kim Jong-il. Kim was fingered as being responsible for the Cheonan sinking and Yeonpyeong Island attack, while his son Jong-un presents no real grounds for being ruled out as a partner to negotiations.

Also, the breakdown in inter-Korean relations has posed a major political burden on the administration in the lead up to next year's general and presidential elections. At a time when North Korea is showing no response to the emphasis on "principled dialogue," calls for a change in North Korea policy ahead of the elections have been growing even within the ruling Grand National Party.

Analysts also said the administration gained confidence in a policy shift when even conservatives agreed to a government expression of condolences to North Korea as "consolation to the North Korean people."

"With the new Kim Jong-un regime, we have the possibility of starting over, of 'resetting,'" a senior official at the Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday, adding that content along these lines would likely be contained in the President's New Year's address, which is scheduled for January 2.

It remains to be seen whether Lee's policy shift will be put into practice. The possibility of erratic behavior from Pyongyang has always been an issue in inter-Korean relations. A case in point was the skirmish in the West Sea during the Kim Dae-jung administration. Managing this while fighting the Cold War-era perspectives of conservative quarters has been no easy task for the administration, given its support base. Also, with just a year left in Lee's term, his range of movement has been narrowed.

Analysts said the fact the Choi instructed people not to "read too much into" Lee's remarks Thursday signified an awareness of these realistic constraints.

Lee also adamantly refused repeated requests from Won Hye-young to allow private sector representatives and associates of the late former President Roh Moo-hyun to express their condolences, saying, "We can't have divisions of public opinion. We mustn't allow our principles to be compromised."

Following an hour-long meeting with ruling and opposition party chairs Thursday, Lee had a private meeting lasting around 50 minutes with Park Geun-hye.

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