The JoongAng Daily editorial from 11 August, A bad time to air a dispute, nailed the situation in the first half;

While U.S. President George W. Bush and Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill have repeatedly asked the North to give up all its nuclear programs, Unification Minister Chung Dong-young has taken the opposing tack, calling the right to peaceful nuclear energy “a just and general right.” For this dispute to have become public with a final agreement in the six-party talks still pending is not desirable. [emphasis added]

Sort of an understatement, but yes, why would South Korea try to beat the North to throwing the last monkey wrench into the works? I guess they got the spirit of Juche.

But missed by a mile in the second half of the article;

The key to solving this is to erase the mistrust that exists between the United States and North Korea. If both countries establish trust, the issue of allowing a peaceful nuclear energy program can be solved easily. Thus, while the six-party talks are in recess, South Korea needs to make its best efforts to closely cooperate with neighboring countries and the United States in order to erase this mistrust. To do that, it needs to negotiate on the working level, quietly narrowing and resolving differences. Advertising its points of disagreement with the United States, as is happening now, is of no help at all. When such differences become public, they can hinder the process and bring about unexpected results. Officials from both South Korea and the United States need to refrain from expressing their differences through the media. [emphasis added]

This shows the ever-hopeful side of South Koreans, despite decades of this behavior from the North. Just talking will never solve this; both sides already knows what the other wants.

So, were Minister Chung’s statements a slip? Look like the answer is no, and both sides have been downplaying the yawning gap in difference of opinion. Seems a bit futile.

This situation will not truly change until North Korean leadership changes, and any agreement in the interim very likely will not pan out, no matter how hopeful the South Koreans are.