DPRK says inter-Korean contact gives lesson to South Korea

PYONGYANG - The just concluded north-south senior level contact would teach South Korea a harsh lesson, a top military official of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) said on Tuesday.

"South Korean authorities must have learned the lesson through the high-level emergency contact," said Hwang Pyong So, director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army.

It will only entail military conflicts that escalate tensions if South Korea fabricates a groundless case, makes unilateral judgment and moves to provoke the other side, he said in a televised speech.

The agreement reached was a fruition earned by the sincere effort and principled fight of the DPRK army and people who expect to reduce military confrontation, defuse tension and improve inter-Korean ties, he said.

"It is fortunate to foster a fresh atmosphere for improving north-south relations through joint efforts," Hwang said, hoping Seoul can in practical ways contribute to the development of inter-Korean ties by actively implementing the deal.

The DPRK and South Korea reached an agreement early Tuesday morning to defuse tensions on the peninsula following a 43-hour dialogue in the "truce village" of Panmunjom.

The DPRK expressed regrets over landmine blasts, which maimed two South Korean soldiers, and South Korea agreed to stop all propaganda broadcasts from Tuesday noon in frontline areas, according to their joint statement.

Under the six-point agreement, both sides agreed to hold an inter-governmental dialogue in Pyongyang or Seoul at an earliest possible date to improve ties and to go ahead with talks and negotiations in various areas.

The two sides agreed to hold a working-level Red Cross contact in early September for the reunion of families separated by the 1950-1953 Korean War during the upcoming Chuseok holiday that falls in late September.

Seoul and Pyongyang also agreed to facilitate broad private-sector exchanges.

From Tuesday noon, South Korean military has stopped all loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts, but the loudspeakers placed in 11 places along the border have not been dismantled as Defense Ministry officials said removal of the facilities was not mentioned in the talks.

In return, the DPRK lifted the semi-state of war in the frontline areas.