S Korea issues ultimatum to North on talks

South Korea yesterday gave North Korea 24 hours to agree to formal talks to restart operations at their joint Kaesong industrial zone, warning of "significant measures" if Pyongyang declines.
It was a rare ultimatum from the South, which is more used to being on the receiving end of such warnings, and reflected Seoul's growing impatience with the costly impasse over Kaesong.
The Unification Ministry did not specify the measures to be taken, but there was a clear suggestion it might consider a permanent withdrawal from the zone, which normally employs 53,000 workers at 123 South Korean firms.
Kaesong is a rare symbol of inter-Korean cooperation.
Established in 2004 and lying 10 kilometres inside North Korea, Kaesong is a crucial hard currency source for the impoverished North, through taxes and revenues.