The first military talks between the two Koreas in nearly two years yielded no fruitful result Thursday, only reaffirming their differences over the March sinking of the corvette Cheonan.
South Korea reiterated that North Korea should take “responsible measures” for the sinking during their working-level talks at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjeom.
During the talks that lasted for one hour and 40 minutes, North Korea restated that it could not accept the result of the Seoul-led multinational probe and renewed its call for the South to allow its inspection team to verify the investigation result.
The talks, during which Col. Moon Sang-gyun of the South and Col. Ri Son-kwon of the North represented the two sides, were held at a time when inter-Korea relations have been strained following the naval disaster that caused the deaths of 46 sailors.
The probe team, which included experts from the U.S., Britain, Sweden and Australia, concluded that the 1,200-ton vessel was torpedoed by a North Korean midget submarine near the tense western inter-Korean sea border.
The North has persistently denied its role, calling the investigation result a fabrication.
South Korean Army Col. Moon Sang-gyun (left) and his North Korean counterpart Ri Son-kwon shake hands before holding inter-Korean military talks at the truce village of Panmunjeom on Thursday. (Joint Press Corps)
“During the talks, we strongly urged the North to acknowledge its responsibility, apologize, punish those responsible for the sinking and take measures to prevent a reoccurrence,” said the Ministry of National Defense in a press release.
“We also urged the North to immediately stop military threats and provocative acts near our territorial waters and halt activities denouncing and smearing our authorities.”
The North Korean side also called on South Korean civic groups to stop sending anti-North leaflets into its territory, according to the ministry. It also argued that South Korean naval ships have been violating the maritime military demarcation line.
The communist state has called on the South not to fly propaganda leaflets as they could potentially cause problems for its leadership in managing the reclusive tightly controlled regime.
The leaflets were intended to introduce the development of South Korean society, compare the South and North Korean social and economic systems and explain the truth behind the sinking of the Cheonan.
The two sides did not set a date for the next round of the talks. The inter-Korean military talks were last held in October 2008. The two Koreas have held a total of 46 rounds of military talks since 2000.
By Song Sang-ho (
sshluck@heraldcorp.com)
