North Korea unexpectedly exonerated

There is no evidence that North Korea diverted wages from workers at the now-closed Kaesong industrial complex to its weapons-making program, a panel of experts appointed by South Korea's Unification Ministry said on December 28.

Kaesong Industrial Complex.

The investigation by the panel of experts reversed the South Korean government's previous contention that most of the money paid by South Korean companies to North Korean workers at the inter-Korean industrial park was diverted to Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs.

Seoul made the announcement as it withdrew from the joint venture, in response to North Korea's launch of a long-range missile last year.

However, in July, two months after President Moon Jae-in was elected, a South Korean government official said there was no concrete evidence to support the claim.

About 120 South Korean companies have paid $140, double the $70 minimum wage in North Korea, to 55,000 North Korean workers in Kaesong, according to Reuters. The project was born out of the first inter-Korean summit in 2000, when the leaders of the two countries pledged cooperation and reconciliation.

Before the Kaesong industrial complex was closed last year, it was the last remaining symbol of inter-Korean rapprochement amid frosty cross-border relations between North and South Korea.

The suspension of the Kaesong project was a "unilateral and verbal" decision by President Moon's predecessor a day after North Korea's missile test, without formal discussion within the administration, the panel said.

"The presidential office inserted arguments about salary issues as the reason without clear information, specific evidence, and consultation with relevant agencies. In addition, the conclusion was made mainly based on the testimony of defectors, which lacks objectivity and credibility," Kim Jong-soo, head of the expert panel, told reporters.

South Korean president pledges to reopen Kaesong industrial zone if North Korea denuclearizes.

According to Dan Tri