North Korean vessels could be allowed to enter South Korea’s territorial waters in the event of an agreement between the two Koreas, Seoul’s Ministry of Unification (MOU) said Friday.

Reiterating the government’s position this week that the “May 24” sanctions — introduced in response to the sinking of a South Korean naval corvette in 2010 — do not represent a barrier to inter-Korean cooperation and exchange, MOU spokesperson Yoh Sangkey said “the measures’ effectiveness has been lost.”

The May 24 measures placed restrictions on five key areas of inter-Korean commerce, including prohibiting North Korean vessels from navigating South Korean territorial