Two Koreas Near Agreements on Railroad Construction

South and North Korea held the working-level meeting for the 2nd Economic Cooperation Promotion Committees on the 29th, and agreed to break the ground for the connection of cross-border railroads, Gyeongui and Donghae Railroads, and road. In particular, the two sides are said to be considering setting the date for the ground-breaking ceremony coincided with Sep 18, the date South Korea began the construction for relinking Gyeongui Railroad two years ago in accordance with the agreement at the 1st inter-Korean ministerial talks.

South and North Korea are also reported to have agreed on issues on the agenda such as conducting a joint inspection on possible dangers of Geumgangsan Dam and setting the date for a working-level contact to prevent damage caused by floods in areas near Imjingang Dam.

The two Koreas ironed out differences over specific schedule for military talks designed to take into effect the agreement on military safety for railroad and road construction.

Cho Myung-gyun, spokesman of the South Korean delegation said, "The two sides are closing to agreement on some issues. Regarding the exchange of the agreement on military talks, North Korea wanted more time to consult with its military at the 7th inter-Korean ministerial talks. And since there has been sufficient time, it is not a serious obstacle down the road."

As progress has been made on railroad and road connection, the government is positively mulling over providing 300,000 to 500,000 tons of rice for North Korea.

Kwang-Am Cheon Young-Sik Kim iam@donga.com spear@donga.com