The Unification Ministry said on Friday even if North Korea moves forward with a provocative act, such as a missile test, South Korea will keep the door open for dialogue with the regime.
 
The ministry’s deputy spokesperson Lee Yoo-jin relayed Seoul’s stance in a regular media briefing, reiterating its two-track approach of responding to the North’s provocations with pressure and sanctions while also seeking talks.
 
Lee noted to bring peace to the Korean Peninsula, Seoul needs to seek a peaceful resolution to the North’s nuclear issue and to develop inter-Korean relations.
 
The spokeswoman declined to comment on doubts over the realization of inter-Korean talks given Pyongyang’s refusal to allow the request by Hyundai Asan to hold a ceremony to commemorate the company’s late chairman, Chung Mong-hun, in Mount Geumgang, only repeating that the government will flexibly review civilian inter-Korean exchanges as long as it does not hamper the international sanctions regime.