S. Korea denounces N. Korea for linking family reunions and war drills 통일부， 한미

″Improper and overstretched.″ That′s how South Korea labeled North Korea′s recent claims... to halt Seoul－Washington joint military drills for resuming separated family reunions. Hwang Sung－hee reports. South Korea slammed North Korea on Wednesday for linking the reunions for war－separated families and the ongoing military drills between Seoul and Washington. ″The military exercises are defensive， annual and regular. The issue of family reunions is a humanitarian matter that must be resolved immediately. It is improper and overstretched to link the two issues.″ In her Liberation Day speech， President Park Geun－hye said South Korea will send the North a list of about 60－thousand families waiting to reunite with their relatives in North Korea. Millions of family members were separated from their loved ones during the Korean War in the 1950s. ″Regardless of our conflicting ideologies， we must seek a fundamental solution to the separated family issue， from a humanitarian perspective.″ But in its state－run Rodong Sinmun newspaper on Wednesday， North Korea criticized President Park for contradicting herself by mentioning the reunions when she laid the toll bar on inter－Korean cooperation. Just a day earlier， Pyongyang claimed the separated families will naturally meet once the joint military drills are suspended. The annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercises between Seoul and Washington that began this week will run through August 28th. While South Korea previously planned to hold the reunions in time for the Korean Chuseok holiday next month， the unification ministry said there is no set timeline since resuming the event is of the utmost importance. Hwang Sung－hee， Arirang News.