Kim Jong-un says he’s willing to restore key hotline between North Korea and South
Kim Jong-un says he’s willing to restore key hotline between
North Korea and South
Kim Jong-un is prepared to restore his country’s hotlines
with South Korea, several months after it stopped replying to messages from
Seoul, North Korea’s state news agency has revealed.
The rival’s series of direct communication channels were
used for two weeks earlier this summer, before Pyongyang closed them in protest
at South Korea’s annual joint military drills with the US.
The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Thursday
that these hotlines could be up and running again in October.
The North Korean leader said the move sought to realise his
people’s desire for peace, according to KCNA.
However, the development comes a day after Pyongyang
announced that the hypersonic missile test it conducted on Tuesday - its third
launch this month - had been successful.
Last week, Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of the North
Korean leader, said that her country would consider holding a summit with its
neighbour, as long as Seoul abandons “hostile policies”.
Although Ms Kim did not specify what she meant, regional
experts suggest Pyongyang might want South Korea to help lift American
sanctions against it.
She added that reconciliation between the countries is
possible. “There is no need for the North and the South to waste time faulting
each other and engaging in a war of words,” she said.
In response to her comments, Seoul’s unification ministry
said on Sunday that the inter-Korean hotlines would have to be restored before
discussions took place
By Rory Sullivan
for independent.co.uk
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