Seven months after the U.S. began restricting some intelligence sharing on North Korea’s nuclear facilities, South Korean officials still differ over how serious the problem is, what caused it and how close the allies are to resolving it.

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, whose remarks in March are widely reported as the trigger, has called the restrictions “a mistaken measure” rooted in an American misunderstanding. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) has insisted that cooperation with Washington remains active.

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun saidat a parliamentary audit on Oct. 6 that intelligence sharing was proceeding “without problems.” Six days later, South