ROK more interested in nuclear standoff in DPRK
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South Korea is more interested in resolving nuclear issues of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) than in the power transition reportedly underway in the state north of the border, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said Monday.
"It now seems certain that North Korea (DPRK) is moving toward the third-generation hereditary power succession," the president said during a luncheon meeting with Seoul-based foreign correspondents, held at his office Cheong Wa Dae. It was his first direct comment on the issue.
"(But) whatever the process of the hereditary succession is like, North Korean nuclear issues, inter-Korean peace, human rights of North Korean people and their happiness -- these are what we're interested in," Lee added.
His remarks come at a time when relations between the two Koreas, former wartime rivals, are seen to be inching toward a thaw. A recent flurry of diplomatic exchanges between the two sides is putting a brake on the downward spiral in their ties, which dropped to the lowest level in years following the March sinking of a South Korean warship, blamed on Pyongyang's torpedo attack, which was firmly denied by Pyongyang.
There are also apparent signs that moribund nuclear talks aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear programs might revive in not too distant future, as the DPRK recently expressed its willingness to return to the negotiation table.
The DPRK, meanwhile, held a massive parade in its capital Sunday with leader Kim Jong-il and his youngest son and heir apparent Jong-un in attendance.
