South Korea's unification minister defended Seoul's engagement with North Korea yesterday after its nuclear test, saying the North was not readying for another blast.
"There are no signs of North Korea preparing for a second nuclear test," Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung said in a speech to European business leaders in Seoul.
Lee denied that South Korean investments in joint projects had been diverted to the North's nuclear weapons programs, as some critics allege.
He said such arguments were based on "assumptions."
The projects are part of the unprecedented reconciliation between the two Koreas since their leaders held a summit in 2000.
"If we want to induce North Korea to open and integrate into the world economy, criticizing normal transactions without grounds would get us nowhere," he said.
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