Ministry of Unification: "Contact with North Korea's Liaison Office Made This Afternoon" (2nd Report)
"Inter-Korean Liaison Talks Proceed as Usual"
The Ministry of Unification announced on the afternoon of the 8th that the inter-Korean contact consultation at the Inter-Korean Liaison Office (Liaison Office) proceeded as usual.
Since the establishment of the Liaison Office following the April 27, 2018 Panmunjom Declaration, the two Koreas have conducted start-of-work and end-of-work calls twice daily on weekdays at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., even when there were no special issues.
However, on the morning of that day, the North did not answer the start-of-work call, raising concerns that, as the North had previously warned, the Liaison Office might be entering the process of closure.
With the Ministry of Unification stating that "the inter-Korean contact consultation at the Joint Liaison Office proceeded as usual this afternoon," it appears that the worst-case scenario was avoided.
However, the Ministry also stated that "there was no particular comment from the North regarding the failure of the morning contact consultation."
Meanwhile, this was the first time since the opening of the Liaison Office in September 2018 that the North did not answer a call attempt.
Kim Yo-jong, First Deputy Director of the Workers' Party, harshly criticized the South Korean government's response to the distribution of leaflets to the North in a statement on the 4th, warning of the suspension of tourism to Mount Kumgang, complete dismantlement of the Kaesong Industrial Complex, nullification of the September 19 inter-Korean military agreement, and closure of the Liaison Office.
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The spokesperson for the Workers' Party United Front Department also stated in a statement released on the 5th that "the Inter-Korean Liaison Office, which is idly sitting in the Kaesong Industrial Zone with nothing to do, will definitely be abolished first."
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