The delegations from South Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) met for the second time at the Kaesong Joint Industrial Complex on Thursday amid escalated tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

"The talks started at 10:40 a.m. (0140 GMT)," Unification Ministry spokesman Chun Hae-sung said, adding that customs process for the South Korean delegation delayed the talks by 40 minutes.

An official with the unification ministry said the talks were adjourned around 11:30 a.m. (0230 GMT), but it was not clear whether the two sides would resume the talks in the afternoon.

The rare meeting, held some 50 days after the first talks ended without fruitful results, comes as border tensions remain high.

Before the South Korean delegation left for Kaesong, Kim Young-tak, head of the delegation, said the main focus of the South Korean side was the release of the South Korean worker, who has been detained in the DPRK since March for allegedly "publicly denouncing the regime."

Source: Xinhua