Seoul, Aug 28: South and North Korean negotiators agreed today to work toward reconnecting railway and roads across their border by the end of the year. The agreement was reached at the end of three days of economic talks in the South Korean capital city of Seoul.
Both sides also agreed to start building basic infrastructure in the North Korean city of Kaesong, where the two sides broke ground for a joint industrial park in June, according to a joint statement. They also agreed to seek ways to invigorate a troubled tourism project in the North's Diamond mountain.
The negotiators said they would hold another round of economic talks in Pyongyang in late October.
The meetings coincided with six-nation talks in Beijing on North Korea's suspected development of nuclear weapons.
Political and military tension has delayed work on the rail and road projects, and the two sides have failed to meet a number of deadlines.
Today, the two sides said they would try to complete the project by end of this year.
The two roads and two railway routes run through the demilitarized zone, a buffer that was created at the end of the Korean war to keep opposing armies apart. The relinking of the transport corridors through the sealed border would be a powerful symbol of reconciliation despite decades of animosity between the two former battlefield foes. Bureau Report