hankyoreh

spokesperson for the Ministry of Unification

By Gil Yun-hyung, staff reporter

The Ministry of Unification backpedaled on its Aug. 4 remarks about “reaching the limits of patience” with North Korea on the Kaesong Industrial Complex.

Speaking at a regular briefing on Aug. 4, Unification Ministry spokesperson Kim Hyung-suk explained that the “gist” of a spokesperson’s statement the day before had been to “once again urge North Korea to show a sincere change in attitude for the sake of normalizing operations at the Kaesong Complex in a forward-oriented way.”

The move could be intended to give North Korea more time to respond to a proposal eight days ago for a seventh round of working-level talks on the complex.

“The government is firm in its hopes of developing Kaesong into an internationally competitive complex,” Kim added.

Kim’s explanation of the previous statement came because many news outlets read it as an ultimatum to Pyongyang. The mood at the Aug. 5 briefing was very different from the previous briefing, when the ministry seemed willing to allow the Kaesong complex to close down permanently.

The same day, Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae departed for a weeklong vacation. The deputy minister takes over duties when a minister goes on holiday, but cannot make the kind of “momentous decision” mentioned in a previous ministry statement.

Ryoo‘s vacation could also be read as giving Seoul more time to gather its thoughts, and North Korea more time to respond. For the South, the decision to go all in with pulling out of the complex and allowing it to close completely is not an easy one to make.

Meanwhile, the Unification Ministry said that review procedures had been completed for economic cooperation insurance payments claimed by Kaesong tenant companies, adding that payouts may begin as early as this week.

“If reviews by the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Committee [IECC] finish up by early this week, payment procedures will begin as per the tenant companies’ request,” Kim said.

The ministry conducted a written review with members of the IECC and related agencies between Aug. 1 and 5, with plans for a final decision on Aug. 6. The total amount paid out, it said, would be 280 billion won (US$251 million) to 109 companies. Companies receiving insurance payouts cede ownership of assets within the complex to the government, which will then have the right to dispose of them. In other words, the companies would be washing their hands of the complex.

But Kim avoided giving a direct answer when asked whether the payouts would naturally lead to the complex closing down permanently.

“It’s not appropriate for a government authority to discuss the implications,” Kim said as a response.

The ministry also said that communications between liaison officers at Panmunjeom took place as usual on Aug. 4, but that there was no reference from the North Korean side to resuming working-level talks as requested by Seoul.

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