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South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun (right) and the U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
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Inter-Korean cooperation projects not violations of U.N. Resolution: Seoul
The government and the ruling Uri Party have decided to maintain two key South-North economic cooperation projects, Uri floor leader Kim Han-gil said on October 19. The decision was made after the two judged that the Mt. Geumgang (Kumgang) tour program and the Gaeseong (Kaesong) Industrial Complex do not have direct bearing on the October 14 U.N. Security Council resolution calling for sanctions on businesses that aid North Korea’s weapons programs. Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook, Uri chairman Kim Geun-tae, floor leader Kim Han-gill, and presidential chief of staff Lee Byung-wan made the decision after a meeting. The government has also not announced whether it would cease its subsidy program for students, the disabled, and war veterans wishing to visit Mt. Geumgang. It was reported on October 19 that the government would stop these subsidies. However, Rep. Kim Han-gill said, "It is said that the government is considering suspending its financial assistance to the Mt. Geumgang tourism project, but we didn’t discuss the matter today." A key official of the Uri Party said on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, "This is not a time to say whether or not to adjust some of the details of the project, such as the suspension of the government subsidy. We should discuss this after considering the North Korean situation and the U.S. demands." At a parliamentary hearing of the committee on national defense, Song Min-soon, the chief presidential security advisor, also touched on the issue, saying, "We are not discussing the problem right now," adding that "if North Korea tests a second nuclear bomb, the situation will be different, and we should cope differently."Song said that "since U.S. officials said that the decision is South Korea’s to make, I don’t think there is any dissenting opinion [between the two nations]." But he said that the government was reviewing whether the Mt. Geumgang tours violate the U.N. Security Council resolution. "The government hasn’t considered a situation in which only South Korea is left out from sanctions against the North," Song said. "However, in relation to the problem of fully joining the weapons of mass destruction Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), we should compare its effectiveness with its burden." The PSI is a U.S.-led coalition of countries willing to follow a set of guidelines meant to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction. Currently, Seoul has "observer" status on a few of the PSI’s tenets, citing the sensitivity of its relationship with Pyongyang.
