国际英语新闻：DPRK sends notice to S Korea over practical measures for dialogue

PYONGYANG, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) sent a notice to South Korea on Monday to formally inform it of a series of practical measures for dialogue to defuse tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the official KCNA news agency said.

In the notice, the DPRK proposed having a working contact for talks between the authorities of the north and the south in Kaesong on Jan. 27 and talks between the Red Cross organizations of the two sides in Munsan on Feb. 1.

The notice also said the Panmunjom Red Cross liaison channel would be reopened from Jan. 12 and the above-said office would be regularly operated.

In two recent statements, the Korea Asia-Pacific Peace Committee, the chairman of the Central Committee of the DPRK Red Cross Society and the chief of the north side to the Consultative Office for North-South Economic Cooperation separately sent notices to relevant South Korean departments or officials over a package of practical measures for dialogue.

The DPRK side, in the statements, suggested unconditional and early talks to help appease cross-border tensions, which were escalated following a series of South Korean military drills after the sinking of a South Korean warship in March and the exchange of artillery shelling near the disputed maritime border in November.

South Korean authorities had turned down the two statements, saying it was hard to take them as a sincere proposal for talks, considering the content and the form of the proposal.

South Korea said the DPRK had yet to follow up on the statements with an official notice for talks.