Koreas to begin talks over connecting railways within year

Oct 15, 2018, 09:23 am

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South Korea’s Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon and chairman of North Korea’s Committee for Peaceful Reunification Ri Son-kwon talk during a dinner in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Oct. 4./ Source: Joint Press Corps

By AsiaToday reporter Heo Go-woon

South and North Korea will hold high-level talks on Monday at the southern side of the truce village of Panmunjom to discuss the implementation of the Pyongyang Declaration announced by their leaders in September during their third inter-Korean summit. The main agenda is likely to be focused on economic cooperation, such as modernization of North Korean railways and roads as well as forest cooperation.

The South Korean delegation will be led by Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon and will comprise five people, including Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung, Vice Land and Transport Minister Kim Jeong-ryeol, Vice Sports Minister Roh Tae-gang, and director-general Ahn Moon-hyun, the unification ministry said on Sunday.

Ri Son-gwon, chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Country, will head the North Korean delegation. The delegation includes Vice Railroad Minister Kim Yun-hyok, Vice Minister for Land and Environment Protection Pak Ho-yong, Vice Sports Minister Won Kil-u, and Vice Chairman of the National Economic Cooperation Committee Pak Myong-chol.

Moon Sung-mook, Chief of the Unification Strategy Center at the Korean Research Institute for National Strategy in Seoul, said the North is mainly interested in economic cooperation and they are likely to mention "cooperation in the areas of not only railways and roads, but also forest and healthcare."

As both delegations include senior officials in charge of railways and roads, the two sides are expected to firstly discuss on the "groundbreaking ceremony for connecting their rail and road systems along the western and eastern regions within this year", which is included in the September 19th Pyongyang Declaration. It is difficult to start connecting railways now considering the international sanctions imposed against the North, however the Koreas can launch an on-site survey, research, and planning in advance.

The South and the North have concluded a joint investigation on the railway lines and roads along the East and West Seas through the April 27th Panmunjom Declaration and the railway cooperation meetings. However, progress on the railway project has been stalled following the United Nations Command's decision in August to decline South Korea's suggestion to test-run a train on a cross-border railway.

Along with forestry cooperation, the two sides are expected to discuss ways to cooperate in epidemic control and healthcare sectors and outline schedule for follow-up discussions.

They are also expected to push to fix a date and venue for Red Cross talks on video meetings and exchanges of messages between families separated by the Korean War.

In the field of culture and athletics, the delegations are expected to discuss the details of the planned performance in Seoul this month of a Pyongyang arts troupe, as well as South Korea’s push to field a united team at the 2020 Olympics.

In the military field, the establishment of a joint military committee is expected to be one of key agenda items at the meeting.

#high-level talks #Cho Myoung-gyon #Ri Son-kwon #Pyongyang Declaration #railway