North Korea Still Unauthorizedly Operating Kaesong Industrial Complex... Government "Considering Response Measures"

Ministry of Unification "Considering Various Measures"
North Korea Unresponsive to Contact Channels Since April

It has been reported that North Korea continues to operate South Korean facilities within the Kaesong Industrial Complex without authorization.

An official from the Ministry of Unification told reporters on the 15th, "The trend of North Korea unauthorizedly operating the Kaesong Industrial Complex continues to be observed." The unauthorized operation detected by the government includes buses frequently entering and leaving the Kaesong Industrial Complex and lights being turned on at night. However, since this is intelligence and reconnaissance information, the government stated that it is difficult to disclose detailed observation content.

In October last year, the Kaesong Industrial Complex area as seen from the Dora Observatory in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the western front of Paju-si, Gyeonggi Province.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, the government filed a lawsuit at the Seoul Central District Court the day before, seeking damages for North Korea's demolition of the inter-Korean joint liaison office. The defendant is 'Representative Kim Jong-un of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea,' and the government filed the suit on the premise that North Korea is an unincorporated association rather than a state.

When asked whether the Ministry of Unification would take similar measures regarding North Korea's unauthorized operation of the Kaesong Industrial Complex and the unauthorized dismantling of South Korean facilities in the Mount Kumgang tourism zone, as with the demolition of the liaison office, the official said, "Various methods are being considered," but declined to elaborate.

Meanwhile, North Korea has not responded to South Korea's call attempts through the liaison office channel since April 4. Therefore, the fact that the government filed the damage suit against North Korea the day before was also not directly notified. An official from the Ministry of Unification said, "The government is attempting calls daily and making efforts to communicate," adding, "These issues should be discussed through inter-Korean communication channels, but North Korea is not responding at all."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.