Summary of inter-Korean news this week

SEOUL, March 29 (Yonhap) — The following is a summary of inter-Korean news this week.

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(LEAD) N. Korea may scrap inter-Korean basic agreement at next parliamentary meeting: Seoul

SEOUL — North Korea may scrap an inter-Korean basic agreement signed in 1991 at its next parliamentary meeting as its leader Kim Jong-un has defined South Korea as its “primary foe,” Seoul’s unification ministry said Thursday.

North Korea could convene another parliamentary meeting to revise the country’s constitution under the current 14th Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA), while delaying an election to pick new deputies, according to an official at the ministry in charge of inter-Korean affairs.

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S. Korean military says no signs of imminent N. Korean satellite launch

SEOUL — North Korea appears to be making preparations for its next launch of a spy satellite, although there are no signs of an imminent launch, South Korea’s military said Thursday.

Last November, Pyongyang successfully placed its first military spy satellite into orbit after two failed attempts earlier that year. It has since vowed to launch three more spy satellites this year.

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(LEAD) Unification minister slams N. Korea’s abduction, detention of S. Koreans as inhumane

SEOUL — Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho on Wednesday condemned North Korea’s abduction and detention of South Korean nationals as an “inhumane” act, vowing the government’s utmost efforts to resolve the urgent issue.

Kim made the remarks during a meeting with family members of the South Korean victims and chiefs of related advocacy groups, as the unification ministry has created a symbol of South Korean abductees, detainees and prisoners of the 1950-53 Korean War with an image of three forget-me-nots.

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S. Korea’s defense chief calls for defending NLL on anniversary of 2010 warship sinking

SEOUL — Defense Minister Shin Won-sik on Tuesday called for defending the western sea border against enemy threats on the anniversary of the 2010 sinking of a South Korean warship by a North Korean torpedo attack.

The ROKS Cheonan corvette sank near the western Northern Limit Line (NLL), a de facto inter-Korean sea border, in March 2010, after a North Korean midget submarine fired a torpedo at it, killing 46 sailors.
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