North Korea is not responding to South Korea's call for convening the next round of inter-Korean ministerial talks, scheduled to open August 3rd. On Monday, the Seoul government called on the North via a contact in the truce village of Panmunjeom to convene a working-level meeting to discuss details related to the upcoming 15th round of inter-Korean minister-level talks. Northern officials, however, have yet to respond to the call, claiming that higher authorities have not yet given any orders on the matter. The government said it will continue to contact Pyongyang, even while North Korea reportedly expressed regret during recent contact between North and South Korean civic groups over reports of the arrival of some 200 defectors in Seoul Tuesday.