South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun yesterday killed off an investigation into allegations that North Korea received a hefty bribe to host the historic inter-Korean summit in 2000.
Roh rejected a special counsel's request for a one-month extension of the investigation which concludes this week, the president's office said.
The probe has focused on the secret transfer of US$500 million to Pyongyang by South Korea's Hyundai Group, which is involved in projects in North Korea such as tourism and the construction of an industrial zone.
Critics say the transfer was part of a scheme masterminded by the administration of former president Kim Dae-jung to buy his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.
"The investigation has almost been completed," Roh told aides, according to his office.
Roh, who has borrowed heavily from his predecessor's policy on North Korea, authorized the probe when he took office in February.
Independent counsel Song Doo-Hwan has detained the ex-president's top associates, including Park Jie-won, an aide who brokered the summit.
Park was accused of having received 15 billion won (US$12.6 million) in bribes from Hyundai and peddling influence to arrange illegal state-bank loans for the conglomerate.
Opposition parties have demanded an investigation of Kim Dae-jung, 78, who recently had heart surgery, while loyalists of the ex-president see the probe as a political witch hunt aimed at discrediting the Nobel Peace Prize winner.
The inter-Korean summit prompted an unprecedented warming of ties between the two Koreas, bitterly divided since the 1950-53 Korean War.
The ruling Millennium Democratic Party has warned that the probe would further damage inter-Korean ties already hurt by an eight-month-old stand-off over North Korea's nuclear weapons programs.
In requesting a one-month's extension for the probe, special counsel Song said he needed more time to fully investigate the allegations surrounding Park.
Roh suggested Park could be investigated by either prosecution lawyers or a new independent counsel in a separate graft case.
"I think it would be desirable to decide whether to have the prosecution undertake the probe after watching for a while how the National Assembly will decide," he said.
He said the investigation of Park should be carried out thoroughly so that "it does not leave a dot of suspicion."
The opposition Grand National Party, which has a majority of assembly seats, strongly protested Roh's decision, vowing to push for a new bill authorizing the appointment of another special counsel to pursue the probe.
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