12 August 2017

News Story: S. Korea calls for Pyongyang to stop harsh words, respond to talks offer

SEOUL, Aug. 10 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's foreign ministry urged North Korea on Thursday to stop saber-rattling immediately and repeated the call for Pyongyang to respond to its dialogue offer aimed at easing tensions in the region.

"The North's recent threatening words have gone too much and run squarely against with the consensus contained in the statement issued after the ARF (ASEAN Regional Forum). It should stop them immediately," Cho June-hyuck, foreign ministry spokesman, said during a regular press briefing.

"The North should make the right choice and come out to the road toward denuclearization," he added. "In particular, (we) urge it again to swiftly respond to our initiative for better inter-Korean relations so as to establish permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula."

The ARF, held in the Philippine capital of Manila on Monday, is a rare regional security gathering to which North Korea sends its foreign minister annually.

Following the meeting also attended by 26 other Asia-Pacific countries and major powers, it issued the chairman's statement in which they expressed "grave concern" over North Korea's escalation of tensions and urged it to fully comply with U.N. Security Council resolutions.

Read the full story at YonhapNews