South Korea sees little prospect of US-North Korea contact around APEC

South Korea's ‌presidential office ​said on Thursday itsaw littleprospect of US-North Korea contact around the upcoming APEC summit in China or ofPyongyang's ‌participation in APEC-related events. US President Donald Trump has sought to restart talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but US and South Korean officials see fading ‌chances of a meeting this year.

A senior South Korean presidential official, ‌commenting on a recent spike in tensions along the inter-Korean border, also said no additional North Korean activityhad been detected at the Demilitarized Zone beyond preparations for possible loudspeaker broadcasts. North Korean leader ⁠Kim ​Jong Un's powerful ⁠sister, Kim Yo Jong, announced last month that her country was considering restarting propaganda broadcasts over ⁠loudspeakers near the inter-Korean border, ratcheting up tensions with Seoul.

South Korea says North Korean ​mines planted as part of its fortification activity in the DMZ caused ⁠a blast in September that seriously wounded several of its soldiers. North Korea denies responsibility, calling ⁠the ​incident a South Korean fabrication. South Korea is also monitoring whether Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the APEC summit in Shenzhen next week, given Seoul had ⁠some diplomatic issues to discuss with Moscow, he said without elaborating.

A possible trilateral ⁠summit involving the ⁠United States, China and Russia at the gathering could provide an opportunity for the countries to discuss North Korea, the ‌official said.