In the event of a unification of the two Koreas, international support will be needed to cover the high cost since South Korea will not be able to foot the bill alone, the unification minister said Tuesday.

   Speaking at a National Assembly interpellation session, South Korea's Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae conceded that Seoul just does not have the resources to tackle the myriad of problems associated with merging with the North at this juncture.

   "Due to the sheer amount of money that will be needed, a viable plan must be devised to deal with the daunting challenge," he told the lawmakers.

   Ryoo also said there is a need to gauge public opinion on how best to prepare for the eventuality.

   Public opinion in recent years has become less favorable toward unification on the Korean Peninsula, mainly because South Koreans fear such a development can lead to spike in taxes and various social problems.

   Meanwhile, the ranking government official said that Seoul has no plans to call on the North to hold reunions for families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

   The event that had originally been scheduled for late September was called off by the North at the last minute. Seoul has maintained that since it was the North that canceled the humanitarian event, Pyongyang should be the first to call for dialogue on that issue.

   Ryoo then said the Seoul government is in the process of coming up with fundamental ways to resolve the cross-border family issue as thousands of people remain separated from their families across the inter-Korean border after 60 years. (Yonhap News)