By Catherine Putz
The decision comes in response to Pyongyang’s recent nuclear test and satellite launch.
With North Korea bent on making 2016 interesting–testing a nuclear device on January 6 and launching a satellite over this past weekend–South Korea has pulled one of the few cards remaining in its hand and has decided to unilaterally withdraw from the Kaesong Industrial Complex. The South Korean Unification Ministry said in a statement that the complex would be shut down temporarily in response to recent North Korean provocations. The complex was cited by the Ministry as source of income for North Korea:
“Until now, about 616 billion Korean won (about $516 million) have flowed into North Korea via the KIC, with 132 billion won alone last year. It is crucial for South Korea to actively get involved in sanctions while the international community discusses tougher sanctions (on North Korea) for violating UN resolutions and pushing forward with a nuclear test and missile launch.”
An unnamed ministry official was more direct to Yonhap News Agency, linking the complex to North Korea’s nuclear program: “The operation of the complex should not be used for North Korea’s development of weapons of mass destruction at a time when the international community is pushing for tougher sanctions against the North.”
Read the full story at The Diplomat