North Korea snaps all communication with South Korea

Pyongyang's all cross-border communication lines would be cut off in the first step of the determination to completely shut down all contact with South Korea. The decision to sever communications was made by Kim's sister and former hard-line military intelligence chief Kim Yong Chol.

Seoul: North Korea said that it was cutting off all communication channels with South Korea on Tuesday, a move experts believe could signal Pyongyang has grown frustrated that Seoul has failed to revive lucrative inter-Korean economic projects and persuade the US to ease sanctions.

The North's Korean Central News Agency said that all cross-border communication lines would be cut off at noon in the "the first step of the determination to completely shut down all contact means with South Korea and get rid of unnecessary things."

When South Korean officials tried to contact their North Korean counterparts via several channels after Pyongyang's announcement on Tuesday, the North Koreans didn't answer, according to Seoul.

North Korea has cut communications in the past — not replying to South Korean phone calls or faxes — and then restored those channels when tensions eased. Pyongyang has been accused at times of deliberately creating tensions to bolster internal unity or to signal its frustration over a lack of progress in nuclear talks with Washington.

In its announcement, North Korea said that Tuesday's move was a response to Seoul's failure to stop activists from floating anti-Pyongyang leaflets across their borders.

"The South Korean authorities connivedat the hostile acts against (North Korea) by the riff-raff, while trying to dodge heavy responsibility with nasty excuses," KCNA said.

AP