Seoul vows to consistently pursue normalisation of inter-Korean ties after North Korea statement

Seoul, Aug 14 South Korea will consistently pursue the normalisation of ties with North Korea, the unification ministry said on Thursday, responding to Pyongyang's statement rejecting Seoul's conciliatory overtures.

"The government will consistently pursue normalisation and stabilisation of ties between South and North Korea in a way that can become mutually beneficial," an official at the unification ministry said.

The reaction came just hours after Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, issued the statement, rebuffing the Lee Jae Myung administration's actions to appease North Korea and resume dialogue, calling them a "pipe dream."

"We have clarified on several occasions that we have no will to improve relations with (South Korea) ... and this conclusive stand and viewpoint will be fixed in our constitution in the future," Kim Yo-jong said.

"It may be necessary for Seoul to take an undaunted, long-term approach in order to turn the strength-to-strength inter-Korean ties of the past three years into ones of goodwill," the ministry official noted.

Sincere attitudes and consistent actions from both countries are needed to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula and build peace, the official said.

He assessed the timing of Thursday's statement by Kim may have been chosen in consideration of Lee's public address on Friday, marking the 80th anniversary of the Korean Peninsula's liberation from Japan's colonial rule, as well as the upcoming Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise between Seoul and Washington and the August 25 summit between Lee and US President Donald Trump.

Kim's statement also reflects North Korea's stance of prioritising relations with the US over Seoul, the official noted, adding that Pyongyang appears to view Washington as a more suitable counterpart for addressing its issues.

In the statement, Kim also left open the possibility of resuming dialogue with Washington, saying, "If the US persists with the outdated way of thinking, the meeting between the top leaders (of North Korea and the US) will remain only the 'hope' of the US side."

Kim also said North Korea has "never removed loudspeakers installed on the border area and is not willing to remove them," refuting Seoul's earlier announcement that Pyongyang had begun dismantling them in response to Seoul's overture, Yonhap news agency reported.

During a press briefing, however, Col. Lee Sung-jun, spokesperson for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, maintained the military's conclusion that North Korea had removed one of its border-area loudspeakers.

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