South Korea is considering many options to improve relations with North Korea, in the context of tensions between the two sides having escalated to the worst level in many years.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense said this, but declined to comment on a specific issue related to the possibility of allowing people in this country to travel personally to North Korea.
Koo Byung-sam, a spokeswoman for the inter-Korean affairs ministry, said that personal trips do not violate international sanctions. Tourism is one of the few sources of North Korea's cash revenue not covered by UN sanctions, which have been imposed due to the country's nuclear and weapons programs.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has pledged to make efforts to improve the strained relations with Pyongyang. To ease the situation, he ordered the suspension of anti-North Korean loudspeaker broadcasts along the border and ended the campaign to distribute leaflets from groups operating against Pyongyang.
Mr. Lee also said that he will discuss with senior security officials to find a way to resume dialogue with North Korea - a country that is still in a state of conflict with the South.
In related developments, North Korea recently opened a beach resort in Wonsan city, considered a key project promoted by Mr. Kim Jong Un to promote the tourism industry. However, the area has yet to welcome foreign visitors, according to a note posted on July 16 on DPR Korea Tour - a website operated by the National Tourism Administration of North Korea.
When asked about the possibility of Koreans being allowed to travel to Wonsan, the UN spokesperson stressed that North Korea first needs to open the region to the outside world. South Korea has previously held tours to the Kumgang mountains, but has suspended the event since 2008 after a South Korean tourist was shot and killed by North Korean soldiers.
