Seoul Seeking Dialogue With Pyongyang
Komfie Manalo - All Headline News Foreign Correspondent Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (AHN) - South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday he sent an invitation to his North Korean counterpart, Paek Nam-sun for a dialogue during the opening of the Association of South East Asian Nation (ASEAN) regional security forum in Malaysia. If the meeting pushes through, this would be the highest-level talks between the two countries since North Korea test-fired several missiles over the Sea of Japan three weeks ago. Ban told reporters on his arrival at the Kuala Lumpur airport, "I have proposed to meet, but I have not received any firm confirmation from the North Korean foreign minister." Relations between the two Koreas made a quick turn around after the tests. Pyongyang walked out of a cabinet-level meeting in July and halted several projects particularly reunions between relatives separated in the last Korean War. Ties between the two Koreas, which had been warming over the past few years, turned chilly again after the tests. North Korea walked out of a cabinet-level meeting in July and halted a number of projects with the South. It was not the first time both sides will meet on the sidelines during the annual ASEAN regional forum. In 2005 the foreign ministers of North and South Korea met on the sidelines of talks hosted by ASEAN. Reuters said the south is hoping that the North Korean foreign ministers will e |
