hankyoreh

Oct. 14.

Factors contributing to tensions between North Korea and South Korea resulting from the Imjin River flood disaster were removed Wednesday at an inter-Korean working-level meeting held 38 days after the incident occurred. During the meeting, North Korea expressed its regrets and condolences on the incident where an unannounced discharge of water from the Hwanggang Dam resulted in the deaths of six South Koreans last month. The South Korean government, which has been calling for a formal apology, immediately announced that its acceptance of the “apology.” Some observers are predicting that the mood for inter-Korean dialogue will carry over to Friday’s Red Cross meeting.

During the working-level meeting on the prevention of future disasters held at the South-North Joint Office for Economic Cooperation in Kaesong, North Korean representatives said, “We think it is very regrettable that an unintended loss of life occurred for South Korea due to the ‘Imjin River accident.’” They also expressed “profound condolences for the bereaved family members,” a Unification Ministry official reported. The meeting started at 11:00 a.m. and lasted approximately one hour and 20 minutes.

The Unification Ministry official added that North Korean representatives described the circumstances of the discharge by saying, “The organization responsible for the dam needed to immediately discharge some water in order to prevent greater damage from occurring.”

These discussions between North Korea and South Korea took place over a period of 80 minutes Wednesday morning, and the afternoon meeting only lasted for 15 minutes after it began at 2:30. During the afternoon meeting, representatives agreed to continue discussions on a plan for preventing disasters and on sharing use of waterways such as the Imjin River. A schedule for follow-up talks is expected through the exchange of documents by way of a liaison officer at Panmunjeom. This means that discussion of disaster prevention has only just begun, and no specific discussions have yet taken place.

Cheong Wa Dae (the presidential office in South Korea or Blue House) Spokesman Park Sun-kyoo expressed a favorable view, saying that he hoped this meant North Korea was demonstrating its intentions to improve relations with South Korea. In addressing North Korea’s explanation for the circumstances of the discharge, Park said, “I think it was an answer to our call for a reason why the water release was so urgently needed.”

A Unification Ministry official said, “Overall, North Korea appears to have apologized, and our official government position is that this is being taken as an apology.” On Sept. 7, a day after the discharge occurred, North Korea sent an announcement to South Korea in which it wrote that the water was discharged because the dam’s water level had grown too high and that South Korea would be warned in the event of any large discharge in the future. The next day, the South Korean government called for “a sufficient explanation and an apology from the responsible North Korean authorities” through a statement by a Unification Ministry spokesperson.

The difference in the duration of the morning and afternoon meetings indicate that both North Korea and South Korea mainly saw these talks as a chance for creating a mood for dialogue rather than for devising a specific plan to avert future disasters. A stumbling block to resuming inter-Korean dialogue was raised after the Imjin River flood disaster when North Korea’s insufficient explanation clashed with South Korea’s demand for an apology. Without a resolution, it would have been difficult to move into discussions between authorities in earnest, and Wednesday’s talks appear to have been used appropriately to create a setting for resolving the issue.

Some observers are speculating that some preliminary fine-tuning between North Korea and South Korea took place behind the scenes in order to create this mood for dialogue. According to them, the whole thing seems pre-staged as South Korea had just proposed talks just two days before, North Korea immediately accepted a day later and then expressed its regrets and condolences, and finally, South Korea immediately accepted the “apology.” However, a government official denies this and says, “It was time for North Korea to come out for talks, and it was the right time for us as well.” The official added, “There was no prior fine-tuning that occurred between North Korean and South Korean authorities.”

Analysts say it is still too early to tell if it will be possible for North Korea and South Korea to move towards real dialogue. If some headway is made in issues involving reunions of separated families and humanitarian aid at the Red Cross talks scheduled for Friday, observers are suggesting this could form a foundation for a complete restoration of inter-Korean relations, including holding high-level talks.

Many others are saying that it will be difficult to move past the current state of affairs towards a full-scale restoration of inter-Korean relations, including the resuming Mt. Kumkang and Kaesong tours, as long as South Korea adheres to the principle of resolving the nuclear issue through sustained sanctions against North Korea.

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