SEOUL, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's unification ministry on Monday urged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to come to the dialogue table for discussions on issues related to tour to the DPRK's scenic resort of Mount Kumgang.
Lee Sang-min, spokesman of the unification ministry, told a regular press briefing that South Korea has emphasized its stance that the Mount Kumgang tour issues should be resolved through face-to-face talks and based on mutual agreement, while urging the DPRK to respond to it.
The comment came after the DPRK's official Korean Central News Agency reported Friday that it sent an ultimatum on Nov. 11 to South Korea as its last warning.
With the ultimatum, the DPRK warned that if the South Korean authorities persist in its useless assertion, it will take it as an abandonment of the South Korea-built facilities in Mount Kumgang and take resolute measures to unilaterally tear down the facilities.
Top DPRK leader Kim Jong Un said last month that he would welcome the South Korean compatriots at any time if they want to come to Mount Kumgang.
Kim has ordered the removal of South Korea-built "shabby" facilities in the mountain resort in an agreement with the relevant unit of the South Korean side.
South Korea proposed to hold face-to-face working-level talks with the DPRK to discuss the mountain tour issue, but Pyongyang preferred the exchange of letters, rather than sitting down on a dialogue table.
The tour by South Koreans to Mount Kumgang, launched in 1998, has been suspended since a South Korean female tourist was shot dead in 2008 by a DPRK soldier after allegedly venturing into off-limit areas.
Meanwhile, South Korean Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul was currently in the United States on his first travel to the country since taking office, according to local media reports.
In an interview with a U.S. newspaper before the trip, Kim suggested a so-called "Olympics armistice" next year, in which the DPRK suspends its missile tests and the United States halts joint military exercises with South Korea.
South Korea and the United States decided Sunday to delay their winter joint air exercises originally scheduled to be staged later this month.
South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper announced it on the sidelines of the 6th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) in Bangkok, Thailand. Enditem
