S. Korea open to talks with North to ease tensions: official

SEOUL, April 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is open to holding talks with North Korea to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula that have been escalating following Pyongyang's third nuclear test in February, a government official said Friday. Speaking to reporters, Ministry of Unification spokesman Kim Hyung-suk confirmed that Seoul has effectively offered to hold talks with North Korea on Thursday. Both President Park Guen-hye and Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae called for talks with the North, although there was some confusion as to whether Seoul actually called for holding of talks or if it only reiterated its general view that dialogue can be used to ease tensions. "Thursday's comments can be translated as a message that says South Korea wants dialogue and that the North should do the same," the spokesman said. In the past, the presidential office and the ministry in charge of holding dialogue with the North have said there is a need to first create conditions conducive to talks, and had avoided making any commitments to holding talks that could be seen as "caving in" to North Korea's pressure. Kim said that because the leadership in Pyongyang needs to review what has been offered, no official response has come from the communist country as of yet. "The North is probably mulling the government's message," he said. The official said that the North can respond by accepting the call, and if this is the case, there is no reason for Seoul to reject talks. He also said South Korea can propose holding detailed talks that call for the setting of a date for agendas to be discussed. The official, meanwhile, said Seoul will do all it can to help the 123 companies that have built factories at the Kaesong Industrial Complex. He pointed out local banks such as Woori and the Industrial Bank of Korea have offered to loan emergency management stabilization funds to companies whose production has been halted by the North's decision to pull out all of its laborers from the complex. "The ministry is in close consultation and sharing information with the companies and related government agencies to deal with the issue," he said, adding this ad hoc working group set up to support Kaesong companies will be maintained around the clock. He said Seoul will lend assistance to business owners who have expressed the desire to visit their plants in Kaesong next Wednesday. The official, however, said there is a need to wait and see before approving or supporting measures by representatives of the country's small and medium enterprises who expressed a wish to visit the North to touch on outstanding issues. Corporate sources said this group wanted to visit Pyongyang and talk directly with officials at the Special Zone Development Guidance office. "Matters of this nature require government-to-government talks, making it unlikely that private companies will be able to make headway," he said. Meanwhile, Kim said 26 South Koreans are expected to return home during the day, leaving just 235 at the complex. Usually there are over 800 people at Kaesong, but the announcement by the North to limit inflow of South Korean personnel and materials on April 3 has caused numbers to fall steadily. Seoul already said that with no work possible companies should pull their people out, but many have been reluctant to do so out of fear their assets will be confiscated. yonngong@yna.co.kr (END)