A meeting of the chairs of the ruling and the main opposition parties appears likely to be put off until next month because of differences over the agenda.

On Saturday, Saenuri Party chairman Rep. Hwang Woo-yea suggested a meeting with his Democratic Party counterpart Rep. Kim Han-gil to discuss “all political issues” to end their disputes.

While both parties are in agreement over the need to resolve outstanding issues, mainly those regarding the missing 2007 inter-Korean summit transcript, the two sides remain at odds over the methods.

The ruling party wishes to leave the matter in the hands of the prosecution, while the DP leans toward a special counsel investigation. In addition, the DP has been pushing to view existing records regarding the summit to resolve the controversy, while the Saenuri Party also wants to analyze the audio recording of the meeting.

The ruling party’s push on analyzing the recording, in particular, has ruffled the DP.

“For meaningful agreements to be reached at the meeting, the Saenuri Party must first take a responsible and sincere stance,” DP spokesman Kim Kwan-young said Monday, accusing the ruling party of contradicting its leadership’s desire to end political strife. He went on to single out Saenuri deputy floor leader Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun’s call to analyze the recording.

Hwang’s impending absence from the country will also affect the scheduling.

The Saenuri Party chairman is set to attend the meeting of the International Parliamentarians’ Coalition for North Korean Refugees and Human Rights in Poland from Wednesday until Aug. 4, giving only limited time to the negotiators.

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