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North Korea turns down South's proposal to discuss regular meetings of divided families

South Korea's Ministry for Unification expressed its regret in connection with the received negative reply from Pyongyang

Photo {{sliderIndex+1}} from 6

Separated families living in South and North Korea say goodbye holding hands after a brief reunion

A North Korean woman sobs as she leaves her South Korean older brother

© EPA/LEE JI-EUN

Elderly North Koreans wait to board an elevator to meet with their families and relatives living in South Korea during the inter-Korean family reunions

North Korean man, waves to his South Korean relatives in a bus after a separated family reunion meeting

© EPA/LEE JI-EUN

© EPA/LEE JI-EUN

SEOUL, March 06. /ITAR-TASS/. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has turned down the proposal made by South Korea to discuss the orgnization of regular reunions of families divided by the Korean War of 1950-53, the South Korean Unification Ministry, which is in charge of the entire spectrum of relations between Seoul and Pyongyang, reported on Thursday.

The Ministry circulated a message sent in by the North Korean Red Cross Society, which, together with its counterparts from South Korea, engages in arranging such meetings. The message pointed out, "An appropriate atmosphere should be created for the holding of such talks between the two countries". South Korea's Ministry for Unification expressed its regret in connection with the received negative reply from Pyongyang.

It was South Korea's President Park Geun-hyu who suggested the idea of holding talks on the matter through the channels of the Red Cross Societies. On March 1, she sent a proposal to Pyongyang about holding meetings of the two countries' divided families on a regular basis. On Wednesday, the South suggested holding talks with the North on the subject on March 12 at the Phanmunjom border point in the Demilitarized Zone that divides the two countries.

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