The wreckage of the Cheonan frigate displayed at the Navy's 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province / Yonhap



Seoul remains silent amid inter-Korean peace mood



By Lee Min-hyung



North Korea has again denied its involvement in a torpedo attack of the South's Cheonan frigate in 2010, expressing discomfort over Seoul repeatedly laying responsibility on Pyongyang.



The regime has for years claimed no responsibility for the tragic incident that left 46 South Korean sailors dead. But the latest in a series of verbal conflicts came on Monday when Kim Yong-chol, vice chairman of the regime's ruling Workers' Party's Central Committee, sarcastically vented his anger about the incident.



In a recent meeting with South Korean journalists, Kim introduced himself as "the man who the South claims masterminded the attack."



A group of South Korean musicians visited the North for three days beginning Sunday in a move to enhance a festive and reconciliatory inter-Korean mood ahead of the planned summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un later this month.



The remark came about a month after the ranking North Korean official visited Seoul on the sidelines of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. At that time, South Korean activists and opposition parties denounced President Moon for allowing the alleged "Cheonan culprit" to visit the South.



The Rodong Sinmun, the regime's newspaper, also claimed innocence over the incident, criticizing Seoul for what the regime says is "continuously manipulating the incident."



"The move (to lay responsibility on Pyongyang) is putting a damper on reconciliatory inter-Korean relations," the state-run newspaper said. "This is also an unforgivable act of confrontation that is against the ongoing peace momentum on the Korean Peninsula."



The North also threatened to suspend its plan to develop inter-Korean peace if the South pushes ahead with such an "ambivalent attitude."



The South Korean government, however, kept a low profile over the criticism apparently amid concerns that any provocative remarks could break the rare peace move from Pyongyang.



The Ministry of National Defense declined to specify Kim's involvement in the incident.



Its spokeswoman Choi Hyun-soo said in a media briefing Tuesday that the ministry already reached the conclusion that the warship sank due to the attack by the North's torpedo, but no more details have yet been found.



"It is not proper for the defense ministry to specify who and what organizations masterminded the attack," she said. "We need to continue investigating the details."



Following the North's criticism, the United States stepped up its criticism, saying that Seoul and Washington have already reached conclusions that a North Korean submarine fired the torpedo.



"Our position has not changed, the U.S. fully supports South Korea with regard to the Cheonan incident and the objective investigation that followed," Voice of America quoted Kanita Adams, a spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department, as saying.



"The report, issued May 19, 2010, by the team of international investigators reflects an objective and scientific evaluation of the evidence, which points overwhelmingly to the conclusion that the Cheonan was sunk by a North Korean torpedo fired by a North Korean submarine."



