SEOUL - South Korea on Wednesday announced a plan to completely stop operations at a jointly run factory park with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) over Pyongyang's recent nuclear test and long-range rocket launch.
The decision ended the last remaining symbol of inter-Korean economic cooperation, which Seoul saw as a key source of cash to advance Pyongyang's nuclear and missile technology.
Unification Minister Hong Yong-Pyo told a televised press briefing that the DPRK conducted extremist provocations, including the fourth nuclear test and long-range missile launch, in defiance of repeated warnings from the international community.
The DPRK launched a rocket on Sunday to deliver an observation satellite into orbit after testing what it claimed was its first H-bomb on Jan. 6. Pyongyang is banned under UN Security Council resolutions from testing any ballistic missile technology and conducting a nuclear test.
Calling recent provocations as an intolerable act and a challenge to peace and stability to the Korean peninsula and the world, Hong said Pyongyang has never shown intention to give up its nuclear and missile programs as seen in the DPRK's recent declaration to continue nuclear and missile tests.
No change of this situation would advance the DPRK's nuclear capability and result in devastating disasters, Hong said, expressing worry that the DPRK' nuclear development may lead to a "nuclear domino" in the region.(Xinhua)