| This October 2018 photo shows the Kaesong Industrial Complex seen from the Dorasan Observatory in Paju, Gyeonggi Province. Korea Times file |
By Jung Da-min
North Korean media are calling for the resumption of two key inter-Korean projects ― the Kaesong Industrial Complex (KIC) and Mount Geumgang tourism.
Uriminzokkiri, a state-run propaganda outlet, on Monday also blamed the Park Geun-hye and Lee Myung-bak administrations for suspending the projects.
"Inter-Korean economic cooperation projects for the common prosperity of the people, such as the Kaesong Industrial Complex and Mount Geumgang tourism, have been suspended due to the evil scheme of the conservative administrations that pursued submission to foreign power and fratricidal war," it said. "As a result, South Korean companies and people suffered an astronomical amount of damage."
The editorial strongly criticized the South Korean conservative political parties, including the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) and minor conservative Bareun Party, for opposing inter-Korean projects.
South Korean conservative parties say inter-Korean projects should not be resumed until the North makes substantial progress on denuclearization.
In another editorial on Monday, the North's state media also criticized the South Korean government for being "indecisive" on the issue, emphasizing inter-Korean unification against foreign power.
Meanwhile, the main opposition LKP's floor leader Na Kyung-won said Monday that she and other LKP members would visit Washington, D.C. around Feb. 10-11 to tell their U.S. counterparts about the party's stance on the U.S.-North Korea summit. Na said LKP focuses on the "demolition," not "freezing," of the North's nuclear weapons.