S. Korea offers talks on Kaesong industrial park

SEOUL, July 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korea on Friday proposed immediate talks with North Korea on ways to facilitate the operation of an inter-Korean economic zone north of the border.

Seoul's unification ministry said it sent a fax message to Pyongyang through the joint office of the Kaesong Industrial Complex in the North Korean border town of the same name.

The ministry called for sub-panel discussions on cross-border travel, communication and customs at the park, a rare symbol of inter-Korean cooperation.

The South is hoping to secure around-the-clock entry and exit of the complex for its citizens and the establishment of an Internet connection.

The North, in contrast, tightened regulations to limit the entry of South Koreans last week.

"We expressed regret over the unilateral step without any justification under the South-North agreement and (related) regulations," the ministry said in a press release.

More than 120 South Korean small-and-medium-sized enterprises operate in the zone, employing about 50,000 North Korean workers.

The complex is one of the few remaining fruits of unprecedented inter-Korean reconciliation in the early 2000s.

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