6th Inter-Korean Ministerial Meeting Fails to OpenThe sixth round of inter-Korean ministerial meeting slated to take place for Sunday in Pyongyang, failed to open due to disagreement on the venue for the meeting, according to local TVs.On the meeting place, South Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) failed to reach an agreement after exchanging eight telephone messages before Saturday. South Korea insisted the meeting be held in the DPRK's capital of Pyongyang but the DPRK said it should be held in the Mount Kumgang as the mountain is bordering with South Korea which is on high military alert after the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. The disagreement also led to the postponement or cancellation of the sixth round of inter-Korean ministerial talks and the second inter-Korean working-level talks to develop Mount Kumgang tourism business in the DPRK. However, TV reports said the two sides will resume the talks through negotiations later as both South Korea and the DPRK desire to iron out the disagreement resulting from the current situation brought about by the U.S.-led military operation against Taliban. The DPRK said it still throws open the mountain area for the talks, expecting South Korean delegations to go there, according to TV reports. |
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