North Korea to suspend tours of border city of Kaesong starting Dec. 1

North Korea's army also said it will "selectively expel" South Koreans from a joint industrial zone in Kaesong, but stopped short of closing the South Korean-run factories that are a key source of hard currency for the impoverished nation.

Monday's announcement laid out the first concrete measures the North plans to take in implementing its threat to restrict cross-border traffic with the South starting Dec. 1, and marked a new escalation of tension between the two countries still technically at war.

"The South Korean puppets are still hell-bent on the treacherous and anti-reunification confrontational racket," the North said in a message to the South, according to North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency.

"The prospect of the inter-Korean relations will entirely depend on the attitude of the South Korean authorities," the message said, adding that the North's threats are never "empty talk."

South Korea expressed "serious regret" and urged the North to reverse its decision.

"This is a very grave situation that moves South-North relations backward," said Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Ho-nyeon.

Kim urged North Korea to resolve problems through dialogue and said Seoul would take "necessary measures" to ensure the safety of South Koreans remaining in the North, but did not elaborate.

Separately, North Korea sent a series of messages to the South confirming the planned measures, according to the ministry, which is responsible for relations between the two nations.

One message, addressed to South Korean companies operating at Kaesong, said the North will "guarantee" their business activities, though the number of company staff allowed to remain in the zone will be cut, the ministry said.

The North also sent a message to Hyundai Asan Corp., the main operator of the Kaesong city tours and other cross-border projects, saying the tours will be suspended and that any resumption of joint projects depends on Seoul.

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