N. Korea demands S. Korea tear down its facilities at Mt. Geumgang resort
- 5 years ago
Two days after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered the tearing down South Korean facilities at the Mount Geumgang tourist area, Pyeongyang sent a notice to Seoul, saying South Korea should come and remove the facilities.
Seoul says it will work to protect its property rights and look for a creative approach.
Arirang's Unification Ministry correspondent Oh Jung-hee reports.
Through the inter-Korean liaison office Friday morning, North Korea sent a notice to South Korea:
"The North said it will establish a new international tourist district in the Mount Geumgang area and demanded the South Korean authorities and firms come and tear down the facilities they built at an agreed date. It said the details of that can be decided through written exchanges."
The notice comes after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered earlier this week that all South Korean facilities at the North's Mount Geumgang resort be torn down.
He said... the South Korean buildings are ugly... and need to be replaced with what he called "modern, North Korean-style facilities."
"The government will, first, protect South Koreans' property rights; second, take into account the current circumstances, considering the meaning of the Mount Geumgang tours; and third, come up with a creative approach to deal with this."
The ministry says, there're lots to be considered like the current inter-Korean relations and how South Korean citizens are feeling about the recent developments,... but it stressed that above all, dialogue with Pyeongyang is a must.
"Seoul's unification ministry says the most important thing now is for the two Koreas to meet and talk face-to-face. After all, the Mount Geumgang tour program was a symbol of inter-Korean cooperation. Seoul says it will be looking for measures to deal with the matter in a way that could possibly revive the tours."
The general idea is that the North cannot unilaterally put an end to the tours, inasmuch as the tours began as a (quote)"joint project" by the two sides and is historically significant.
But some buildings within the tourist area could be destroyed, because they've been neglected for over a decade and may not be re-usable anyway.
South Korean tours to the North's Mount Geumgang, which started in 1998, have been halted since 2008 after a South Korean tourist was shot dead by a North Korean soldier.
There're 28 facilities at the resort built by the South Korean government or private firms like hotels, convenience stores, banks, and entertainment facilities... and most importantly, a meeting center for South and North Korean families separated by the Korean War.
Oh Jung-hee, Arirang News.
Seoul says it will work to protect its property rights and look for a creative approach.
Arirang's Unification Ministry correspondent Oh Jung-hee reports.
Through the inter-Korean liaison office Friday morning, North Korea sent a notice to South Korea:
"The North said it will establish a new international tourist district in the Mount Geumgang area and demanded the South Korean authorities and firms come and tear down the facilities they built at an agreed date. It said the details of that can be decided through written exchanges."
The notice comes after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered earlier this week that all South Korean facilities at the North's Mount Geumgang resort be torn down.
He said... the South Korean buildings are ugly... and need to be replaced with what he called "modern, North Korean-style facilities."
"The government will, first, protect South Koreans' property rights; second, take into account the current circumstances, considering the meaning of the Mount Geumgang tours; and third, come up with a creative approach to deal with this."
The ministry says, there're lots to be considered like the current inter-Korean relations and how South Korean citizens are feeling about the recent developments,... but it stressed that above all, dialogue with Pyeongyang is a must.
"Seoul's unification ministry says the most important thing now is for the two Koreas to meet and talk face-to-face. After all, the Mount Geumgang tour program was a symbol of inter-Korean cooperation. Seoul says it will be looking for measures to deal with the matter in a way that could possibly revive the tours."
The general idea is that the North cannot unilaterally put an end to the tours, inasmuch as the tours began as a (quote)"joint project" by the two sides and is historically significant.
But some buildings within the tourist area could be destroyed, because they've been neglected for over a decade and may not be re-usable anyway.
South Korean tours to the North's Mount Geumgang, which started in 1998, have been halted since 2008 after a South Korean tourist was shot dead by a North Korean soldier.
There're 28 facilities at the resort built by the South Korean government or private firms like hotels, convenience stores, banks, and entertainment facilities... and most importantly, a meeting center for South and North Korean families separated by the Korean War.
Oh Jung-hee, Arirang News.