Saenuri Party floor leader Rep. Choi Kyung-hwan expressed hopes for inter-Korean exchanges on the parliamentary level on Monday, in an apparent change of stance for the ruling party from only a day earlier.

“If the inter-Korean ministerial talks are successful and once Park Geun-hye administration’s trust-building process takes off, more advanced exchanges including inter-Korean exchanges on the parliamentary level could be expected,” Choi said at the party’s supreme council meeting on Monday.

Choi, however, expressed caution in approaching the matter, saying that trying to achieve too much at the same time would inevitably lead to adverse side effects. He also said that related procedures should be conducted carefully and in stages to regain trust between Seoul and Pyongyang and to establish peace on the peninsula.

Despite the relatively reserved wording, Choi’s comments contrasted with criticism from the Saenuri Party on Sunday that it may be too early to discuss inter-Korean exchanges headed by the parliament.

On Sunday, the ruling party’s deputy floor leader Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun said that it was premature to discuss inter-parliamentary talks between Seoul and Pyongyang, referring to earlier suggestions by high-ranking members of the main opposition Democratic Party.

On June 7, DP floor leader Rep. Jun Byung-hun raised the possibility of establishing inter-Korean communication channels for civilian and parliamentary exchanges at a meeting with Minister of Unification Ryoo Kihl-jae.

“Routes for exchange at the civilian or parliamentary level (between Seoul and Pyongyang) could obtain results from a different aspect when (exchanges) between governments are in a deadlock,” Jun said at the meeting.

Similar views were echoed by former Unification Minister and DP senior advisor Chung Dong-young, who said that trying to arrange talks between assemblies of the two Koreas could be one way in which the party could help to improve inter-Korean relations.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)