Koreas close to agreement on family reunions

(ATTN: UPDATES with ministry spokesman briefing)
By Kim Hyun
MOUNT KUMGANG, North Korea, Aug. 28 (Yonhap) -- South and North Korea were
nearing an agreement on reunions for families separated by the Korean War on
Friday, as Seoul toned down demands on war prisoners and civilians, officials
here said.
On their final day of three-day talks at this North Korean mountain resort, the
two sides were expected to release a joint statement setting a new round of
family reunions -- the first in nearly two years -- for Sept. 26 to Oct. 1,
shortly before the traditional holiday of Chuseok. The venue, as before, will be
the scenic mountain on the east coast.
"We are going to first resolve the issue of setting up the Chuseok reunion,
because the North is limiting these talks to discussions about that issue," a
South Korean official participating in the talks told pool reporters.
The family reunion talks, channeled by Red Cross offices on both sides, were the
latest sign of North Korea shifting to a conciliatory mode toward the South.
Since their last round in October 2007, family reunions did not continue after
the inauguration of President Lee Myung-bak, who took a tough stance on
Pyongyang's nuclear program and halted massive aid to the impoverished state. In
retaliation, Pyongyang cut off dialogue, suspended family reunions and threatened
border clashes.
The Choson Sinbo, a newspaper in Japan that represents North Korea's standing
towards the outside world, said Thursday that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il
decided this month to break the impasse in inter-Korean relations.
The upcoming family reunions "will be a new watershed in improving inter-Korean
relations," the report said. "With the (North Korean) supreme leader's resolution
in August this year, a breakthrough has been made in the inter-Korean stalemate."

In a verbal message to Lee last week, Kim Jong-il wished for "progress in
inter-Korean cooperation," according to the presidential office. The message was
delivered by Kim's envoys sent to Seoul to mourn late former South Korean
President Kim Dae-jung, his counterpart of the 2000 historic inter-Korean summit.

In other conciliatory gestures, North Korea released a detained worker, lifted
cross-border traffic restrictions and restored a major hotline.
Outside watchers see the change of attitude as driven by U.N. financial and other
sanctions over the North's nuclear test in May. Others point out a succession
process reportedly gaining ground in the country. Kim Jong-il's alleged
nomination of his third and youngest son, Jong-un, as his heir earlier this year
cleared uncertainty of the regime and gave urgency to improve ties with the
outside world, they say.
North Korea wants bilateral dialogue with the Obama administration. A group of
Pyongyang officials visited Los Angeles last week to meet with U.S. relief
organizations to get food aid resumed to the country.
The Koreas came to the family reunion talks with a consensus that the event
should be set up around the traditional holiday, when families reunite to give
thanks to their ancestors and celebrate fall harvest. At issue was Seoul's demand
to make such reunions on a regular basis, considering that many of the applicants
are elderly.
Also, South Korea demanded locating South Korean POWs and civilians -- mostly
fishermen -- who were allegedly kidnapped during the Cold War era. Seoul
estimates about 1,000 of them are still being held in the North.
Pyongyang insists it is not holding anyone against their will.
"I believe our position has been sufficiently explained to the North through
these talks," Unification Ministry spokesman Chun Hae-sung said in a press
briefing in Seoul. "Here, we will focus on the most pressing issue of arranging
the Chuseok reunion, but our efforts will continue with patience."
Family reunions began in 2000 as an outcome of the first inter-Korean summit.
For a single round, each side chooses 100 people to reunite with their relatives
from the other side of the border. About 600,000 South Koreans are believed to
have relatives in the North. Ordinary citizens are not allowed to make phone
calls, send letters or exchange emails across the border.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)