SEOUL, Resuming talks with North Korea is a “pressing” matter, the foreign ministry said Tuesday, after the U.N. nuclear watchdog revealed that Pyongyang appears to have restarted its plutonium-producing nuclear reactor.
“South Korea and the United States have been watching closely and sharing assessments on the developments in the North with regard to the nuclear activities inside Yongbyon,” the ministry said in a report submitted to the National Assembly.
“We are continuing efforts to reengage with Pyongyang based on the shared understanding that the resumption of dialogue is a pressing matter to move the denuclearization efforts forward,” the ministry said.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a recent report that the North appears to have reactivated its 5-megawatt reactor at its main Yongbyon complex, judging from possible activities indicative of a discharge of cooling water.
The North previously reprocessed spent fuel rods from the reactor to harvest plutonium for nuclear bombs.
Seoul and Washington have also been in talks on various ways that will help facilitate the reengagement, including cooperation in providing humanitarian assistance to the North, the ministry said.
The government will continue to call for cooperation from China, Japan and the European Union (EU) in efforts to bring the North back to dialogue and maintain stability on the Korean Peninsula, the ministry added.
On Afghanistan, the ministry vowed to continue to work with the international community as it closely monitors any change in the situation in the aftermath of the complete pullout of the U.S. troops.
South Korea has brought to the country a total of 391 Afghans who worked with the South, and their family members, in an operation to help them flee the war-torn nation now under the Taliban’s rule.
Source: Yonhap News Agency