Kim Jeong-ryeol (second from left), the chief delegate from South Korea and second vice chairman of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and Kim Yun Hyok (second from right), the chief delegate from North Korea and the vice railway minister, exchange joint press releases during the high-level talks about inter-Korean railway cooperation, held at the Peace House in Panmunjeom on June 26. (Ministry of Unification)
By Xu Aiying and Hahm Hee-eun
The two Koreas have decided to conduct a joint investigation into linking the railway networks of the two countries, such as the Gyeongeui and Donghae lines.
The chief delegates from South and North Korea held high-level talks about inter-Korean railways, the first in 10 years, at the Peace House in Panmunjeom on June 26.
According to the joint press release, the joint investigation into the Gyeongeui Line from Munsan to Gaeseong, and into the Donghae Line from Jejin to Geumgangsan Mountain, will take place in mid-July. Based on those results, follow-up measures, such as the establishment of signals and communications, are expected to be prepared in order to fully connect the railway networks in both parts of Korea.
On July 24, as preliminary projects for the modernization of the Gyeongeui and Donghae lines, a joint investigation will be conducted into two northern sections: from Geumgangsan Mountain to Dumangang River, and from Gaeseong to Sinuiju.The two Koreas have agreed to continue discussing the issue by exchanging documents via the Panmunjeom communication channel.
The delegates announced that, “Railway cooperation on the Gyeongeui and Donghae lines, adhering to the terms of the historic Panmunjeom Declaration, has important significance for the balanced development and common prosperity of Korea’s economy.”
xuaiy@korea.kr
