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North, South Korea Begin Another Round of Kaesong Talks


North and South Korea have begun a fifth round of talks on reopening a joint industrial complex that has been closed for nearly three months.

A three-member delegation from each side met at the Kaesong Industrial Complex in North Korea Monday to try to narrow their differences shown in the previous rounds of talks.

In their previous meetings, the two sides agreed on a desire to reopen the complex, but could not agree on how to proceed.

South Korea wants assurances that the North will not close the complex in the future because of military or political tensions between the two foes.

North Korea wants an unconditional and early restart of operations, and both sides accuse the other of lacking sincerity in the negotiating process.



The Kaesong park has been closed since April, when North Korea pulled out its 53,000 workers as part of an angry response to international sanctions against its February nuclear test. South Korean businesses withdrew their managers and workers in early May

Many analysts expect slow progress on the talks, as both sides have given indications they are far apart on a number of issues.

Although work at the center has been suspended before during times of heightened tensions, it had never been shut down completely since it was established in 2004.

The complex, which relies on South Korean know-how and cheap North Korean labor, was a key source of hard currency for the North's troubled economy.
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