Nine days have passed since South Korea asked North Korea... if it wanted to hold high-level talks on October 30th,... but Pyongyang has yet to give its response to the proposal.
And making matters worse... North Korea says... it wants the South to stop provoking them... or they will have no choice but to retaliate.
Kwon Soa has the details.
Still no word from Pyongyang.
While South Korea awaits a positive response to its proposal to hold high-level political talks next Thursday,... the only uttering out of Pyongyang was a warning on Monday that it would retaliate if Seoul continues with what it called "provocations."
North Korea was referring to an incident on Sunday when the two Koreas traded fire after 10 North Korean soldiers were seen approaching the Military Demarcation Line near the border city of Paju.
The North also stressed it would maintain its patrols along the border in the future.
Heightened military tensions have cast a dark cloud over prospects the talks will go ahead as planned.
Experts believe North Korea′s hostile behavior following a recent visit by a high-level North Korean delegation is a calculated move.
They say the regime wants to put itself in a better position for talks.
Pyongyang is expected to ask the South to lift sanctions, provide economic support, and take steps to stop South Korean activists from flying anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the border.
Sunday′s shootout came a little over a week after North Korea fired at balloons carrying the leaflets.
Tensions are likely to spike even more later this week as the activists say they plan to fly more balloons across the border.
Kwon Soa, Arirang News.
