South Korea’s Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said on Wednesday that the sanctions, imposed against Pyongyang following a torpedo attack on a corvette that killed 46 South Korean sailors in 2010, were under review.
North Korea has denied any involvement in the sinking.
Kang’s remarks on sanctions, retracted after criticism from South Korean lawmakers, prompted U.S. President Donald Trump to say South Korea would need U.S. approval to relieve sanctions.
“They won’t do it without our approval. They do nothing without our approval,” Trump told reporters, when asked about her comments.
Trump has said sanctions will remain in place until North Korea it denuclearizes.
Kang backtracked on her remarks after facing criticism from some conservative lawmakers that the sanctions cannot be removed unless North Korea first apologized for the attack, a stance adopted by former South Korean governments.
The sanctions ban all North Korean ships entering South Korean ports and cut off most inter-Korean exchanges, including tourism, trade and aid.
At their latest meeting, Moon and Kim agreed to resume economic cooperation, with construction work to be started within this year to reconnect rail and road links. They also agreed to reopen a joint factory park in the North’s border city of Kaesong and the Mount Kumgang tours, when conditions are met.
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