SEOUL, June 5 (Xinhua) -- South Korea on Monday approved four more requests for contact with people from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) for civilian exchanges.
Unification ministry spokesman Lee Duk-haeng told a press briefing that four more requests by non-governmental organizations for contact with the DPRK people would be approved.
It would raise the total number of such approvals to 15 since President Moon Jae-in took office on May 10.
The new government maintained a position that it would flexibly review civilian exchanges within the range of not damaging international sanctions on the DPRK though it would sternly deal with any DPRK provocations.
Civilian inter-Korean contacts had been stalled following Pyongyang's fourth nuclear test in January last year, but the Moon government gave its first green light on May 26 to the request by the Korean Sharing Movement to contact DPRK people for Malaria-fighting efforts near border areas.
Pyongyang reportedly had yet responded to the contact requests by South Korean civilian groups.
