SEOUL, August 22. /TASS/. High-level talks between officials from North and South Korea have been suspended, but will resume later, the South's presidential office said.
Senior aides for the countries’ leaders will resume the negotiations, which have lasted for more than 10 hours at the border village of Panmunjom, later on Sunday at 3 p.m. local time [9 a.m. Moscow time], the presidential office said, adding that during their meeting, the sides "laid out their positions and exchanged views on ways to resolve the current crisis and on the future of inter-Korean relations".
The situation on the Korean peninsula deteriorated seriously on Thursday after North and South Korea exchanged artillery fire in the western part of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Seoul claimed that North Korea was the first to open fire and the artillery shelling was aimed at South Korea’s propaganda loudspeakers installed nearby. Pyongyang rejected the allegations.
On the same day, North Korea forwarded an ultimatum to South Korea to stop broadcasting anti-North Korean propaganda through loudspeakers, to dismantle the equipment within next 48 hours and threatened military action otherwise. Seoul declared it would not meet Pyongyang’s demands.
The meeting at the Demilitarized Zone village began soon after the deadline for North Korea's ultimatum expired.