Government officials withdrew from the Office for Economic Cooperation
and Consultations
Government
officials withdrew from the Office for Economic Cooperation and Consultations
North Korea took issue with the South
Korean government on the comment ( There will be no expansion of GIC without
the resolution of the North Korean nuclear Issue ) that the Unification
Minister had made in his meeting with GIC CEOs and it made a verbal request to
11 South Korean governmental officials to pull out of the Office for Economic
Cooperation and Consultations.
Upon the request, the South Korean
government pointed out the unjustness of the North s action and demanded a
written notice of the North s official position.
But, the North did not accept the South s demand repeatedly asking for withdrawal of people. Thus, the South
Korean government officials left the office at 0:55 on Mar. 27 (Thur.).
The South Korean government expresses deep
regrets over the North s action. The government
announces the North Korean authorities are entirely responsible for what it did
unilaterally which runs counter to inter-Korean agreements and calls for swift
normalization of the Office for Economic Cooperation and Consultations.
North Korea s action may impede the development of Gaeseong Industrial Complex
by giving a sense of anxiety to South Korean businesses hoping to invest in the
complex.
The position of the South Korean government
is that Gaeseong Industrial Complex project, as a model for economic
cooperation between the two Koreas, should continue and the South and the North
should work together in many areas to successfully carry out inter-Korean
economic cooperation projects including GIC.
Spokesperson
of MOU
