UNIFICATION MINISTRY ON JULY 11-13 INTER-KOREAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SEOUL 002362 SIPDIS SIPDIS NSC FOR CHA E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/18/2015 TAGS: PREL MNUC EAID KS KN SUBJECT: UNIFICATION MINISTRY ON JULY 11-13 INTER-KOREAN MINISTERIAL Classified By: A/DCM Joseph Y. Yun. Reasons 1.4 (b),(d). SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) On July 14, Assistant Unification Minister Lee Kwan-sei provided a readout of the July 11-13 inter-Korean ministerial to the A/DCM and emphasized that South Korean government used the meetings to urge the DPRK to return to the Six Party Talks and convey strong ROK regret about the DPRK missile launches. Unable to get the South to discuss anything other than Six Party Talks and missiles, which the North claimed were not appropriate issues for the ministerial talks, the DPRK delegates grew frustrated and left a day early. Asked why the North showed up at the talks, Lee speculated that the North might have wanted to see whether there was any room for ROK flexibility and seeing none, returned home. Lee said there were no dates for further inter-Korean talks. The ROK remained committed to inter-Korean dialogue, but would assess next steps after seeing the results of the PRC diplomatic mission to Pyongyang, events at the United Nations and elsewhere. END SUMMARY. . STAYING ON MESSAGE -------------- ¶2. (C) The Assistant Minister for Unification Policy and Public Affairs, Lee Kwan-sei, on July 14 requested a meeting with the A/DCM to provide a readout of the 19th round of inter-Korean ministerial talks, held July 11-13 in Busan, South Korea. Recalling that the Ministry of Unification (MOU) on July 12 had provided the Ambassador with a summary of Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok's keynote speech, A/MOU Lee said that in all plenary and one-on-one sessions the ROK stressed that the DPRK should return to the Six Party Talks, begin implementing the Joint Statement, and cease missile launches. The South also told the North that if the DPRK did not show flexibility, then Tokyo, Washington, and others would have no reason to change course at the United Nations. Seoul also warned that should the DPRK launch another missile, the South would not be held responsible for the grave "consequences." ¶3. (C) The North tried to steer the conversation to rice and fertilizer assistance, but the South stuck to its message, adding that it had warned that a missile launch would imperil ROK aid. The North countered that Six Party Talks and missiles were not the appropriate topics of the inter-Korean ministerials. In one exchange, the North Korean side claimed that its "military first" policy had helped protect South Korea. Unification Minister Lee shot back that such comments were nonsensical; no one in South Korea had asked for such North Korean "assistance"; and that a North Korean decision to return to the Six Party Talks and to refrain from missile launches were the type of help Seoul was requesting. The North Korean side walked out of the talks, only to return about ten minutes later. In the end, the North apparently decided that there was nothing else to discuss, so it returned home. . TOUGH MESSAGE DELIVERED -------------- ¶4. (C) Lee said that Seoul's objective for the inter-Korean talks was to deliver a tough message, and to convey ROK, USG, and international concerns about North Korean nuclear and missile activities directly to North Korea. The ROK knew that the North Korean delegates at the talks had no authority or even awareness of nuclear or missile activities. Still, Lee assured us, the points were made and they would certainly reach the intended audience in Pyongyang. ¶5. (C) Lee stated that the Unification Ministry was still trying to assess why the North decided to attend the ministerials when they should have known they would not secure food assistance. He speculated that the North Koreans might have thought they would be able to finesse some ROK flexibility, but seeing none, returned home without any joint statement and without any agreement on another round of ministerial talks. . NEXT STEPS: WAIT AND SEE -------------- ¶6. (C) Lee confirmed that ROK food and fertilizer aid to North Korea had now stopped. The ROKG had instructed Hyundai Asan to halt issuing any new land leases for operations in the Kaesong Industrial Complex for the time being. The ROKG remained committed to maintaining dialogue with North Korea, but Seoul would wait to see the results of the PRC diplomatic mission to Pyongyang and how events unfolded at the United Nations Security Council and elsewhere before considering next steps. VERSHBOW