The two Koreas are likely to start a joint inspection of cross-border railways as early as this week, government officials said Sunday, in an effort to implement the agreement reached between their leaders in April.

The two Koreas agreed to revive on-site surveys of the Gyeongui railway, which runs along the peninsula’s west coast, in late October and the Donghae railway along its east coast in November, at high-level talks last week held in the truce village of Panmunjom. 

They also plan to hold a groundbreaking ceremony by late November or early December for projects to modernize and relink cross-border railways and roads.

“The Koreas are known to be discussing ways to conduct the inspection (on the North’s section) of the Gyeongui line starting late this week,” a ministry official said.

“The schedule is flexible, depending on consultations between the government and the United Nations Command over the passage through the Military Demarcation Line. As far as I’m concerned, Seoul’s consultations with Pyongyang as well as the UNC are underway smoothly,” the official added.

Progress on the South-North joint railway survey came to a standstill in August when the US-led UNCs’ refused to approve the plan that Seoul submitted, citing “procedural” problems. Critics claimed that the US was concerned that progress on inter-Korean relations was not in tandem with progress on the US-North Korea talks on denuclearization, coupled with worries of possibility of sanctions violations surrounding the railway project.

If the on-site survey for the Gyeongui line takes place, it is likely to involve a test-run of a train on the railway linking Seoul with the North’s northwestern city of Sinuiju.

It will be followed by the inspection of the eastern railway on North Korea’s soil, which connects the country’s eastern slopes of Kumgangsan with its northeastern North Hamgyong province.

On top of mounting expectations for the survey, the two Koreas plan to hold a series of working-level talks starting this week.

Talks on reforestation of North Korea’s woodlands and pest control are scheduled to take place Monday.

Park Chong-ho, deputy minister of the state-run Korea Forest Service, will lead the South’s three-member delegation, according to the Ministry of Unification.

Park’s North Korean counterpart is Kim Song-jun, a senior official at the North’s Ministry of Environmental Protection.

In October, the Koreas are also scheduled to have health-related talks on curbing the spread of communicable diseases and sports talks to field a joint team for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. They will also discuss co-hosting of the 2032 Summer Olympics.



(mkjung@heraldcorp.com)