by The Commentator on 3 April 2013 00:42

On Saturday, The Commentator reported the story of North Korea's increasingly hostile behaviour in declaring a state of war between itself and South Korea. One of the noteworthy and at the time overlooked nuances of the relationship is the Kaesong Industrial Complex: a joint venture between North and South Korea which directly financially benefits North Korea.

In the past few hours, South Korean media sources have noted that South Koreans are being denied access to the complex which is run by people from both the North and the South. It was one of the final indicators that war was perhaps not as imminent as doomsayers had predicted.

South Korea is apparently waiting for permission for entry to the joint Kaesong industrial complex, a unification ministry official said to Reuters.

"We are waiting for access from the North Korean authorities," the official said. The official declined to comment on the number of South Korean workers currently in Kaesong.The entrance had at the time been delayed for an hour, though it is believed to be several by now.

In our report, we quoted Max Fischer from the Washington Post, who noted, "...we do have one pretty good metric with which to judge the country’s intentions: the Kaesong Industrial Complex."

Just days later, Phil Cane wrote for The Commentator, "The test of brinkmanship for Kim Jong-Un is the Kaesong Industrial Complex on the border, employing over 50,000 North Koreans in 120 South Korean companies. It is a financial life line to Pyongyang. Already today the North Koreans have threatened to close the complex, and if indeed it does close, then we know for sure that the Great Successor has ripped up the old rule book, and we have entered a dark new era of uncertainty."