Rapid progress is being made in behind-the-scenes negotiations to free a South Korean who has been held incommunicado in North Korea for 133 days as of Sunday, sources said.| But don't tell anyone because the negotiations are secret ... |
The man, identified as Yoo (41), was working for tour operator Hyundai Asan at the joint Korean Kaesong Industrial Complex. Apparently, Hyundai Asan president Cho Kun-shik had been expected to visit the industrial park for talks to win his release, but the North Koreans changed their mind at the last moment and wanted to see Hyun instead, the source added.
"All available dialogue channels with the North inside and outside the government, including Hyundai Asan, are being mobilized" to win his release, a government official said. "Indications of affirmative signals are felt here and there."
"I understand that North Korea will use the avenue of solving the Yoo issue through talks with Hyundai Asan without imposing any burden on the government," the official said. "But there's still a chance that the negotiations can go wrong at the last moment if the North demands an apology from our government or sets other irrational conditions for his release."