Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul will meet with the heads of Hyundai Asan and the Korea Tourism Organization on Thursday to discuss North Korea's recent decision to remove South Korean facilities at Mount Geumgang.

The meeting comes after Pyongyang on Tuesday rejected Seoul's proposal to hold in-person talks over the fate of the South Korean tourist facilities. 

The ministry said on Thursday that Kim and the officials will consult on the proper response to the North's rejection and will seek ways to resume tours to the mountain resort, which lies just north of the inter-Korean border on the east coast of the Korean Peninsula.

Hyundai Asan has pumped some 770 billion won into the Mount Geumgang tourist facilities and ran tour operations there for some ten years until 2008, when the program was suspended following the shooting death of a South Korean tourist.

Hyundai Asan is licensed to operate the tour program until 2047.

Regarding the North's rejection for talks, the ministry said earlier that it will devise response measures while closely consulting with the related operator of the tour program under the principle that all inter-Korean issues should be resolved through dialogue and consultation.

[Photo : YONHAP News]