S-Korea invites North for dialogue table to resolve deadlock over industrial complex

Seoul: South Korea on Thursday called on North Korea to come to the dialogue table to resolve the deadlock. “The suspension in operation of the Kaesong Industrial Complex, a symbol of the inter-Korean reconciliation and cooperation, is an act that does not do any good to our nation’s future,” Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae said in a formal statement. [caption id=“attachment_695212” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  A South Korean worker unloads pump accessories made in North Korea’s Kaesong joint industrial complex. AFP[/caption] Ryoo said that “the normalization of the Kaesong complex should be made through dialogue”, urging Pyongyang to “come to the dialogue table to discuss what the North wants”, reported Xinhua. Asked whether the statement is a formal proposal for dialogue with Pyongyang, Ryoo told reporters that it would be a declaration to make certain that “all the problems, including the Kaesong Industrial Complex problem and the escalating threats by North Korea, should be resolved through dialogue”, rather than the government’s formal suggestion for dialogue. Ryoo strongly urged Pyongyang to stop heightening tensions on the Korean Peninsula, expressing his regrets over North Korea’s repeated provocative threats. His comments came amid escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula. IANS