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The heads of South Korea’s seven largest religious orders are scheduled to travel to Pyongyang next week to hold a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, a rare suprapartisan move aimed at promoting a breakthrough in inter-Korean relations, sources said Thursday.
The Korean Conference of Religion for Peace (KCRP), an organization representing the country’s seven largest religious groups, has agreed with its North Korean counterpart on a four-day trip to Pyongyang starting Wednesday, according to the sources.
The North has not yet confirmed the KCRP’s request to meet Kim, but said it expects “an event of meeting,” the sources said, which is likely to lead to talks between the North Korean leader and the visiting religious officials.
The trip comes as religious officials are trying to improve inter-Korean ties and promote peace on the Korean peninsula amid heightened tension across the border following last year’s two deadly attacks. Sources said the religious leaders held a meeting with Unification Minister Hyun In-taek last month in a bid to request permission for the cross-border visit.
The Unification Ministry said it has not yet received an application for the Pyongyang visit, but said it will review the agenda when an official application is filed.
A prominent South Korean conductor Chung Myung-whun said Friday he agreed with Pyongyang officials to push for holding a joint performance of the two Koreas‘ symphony orchestras on a regular basis.
Chung, who leads the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra and also serves as a UNICEF “goodwill ambassador,” returned home Thursday after a four-day trip to North Korea aimed at promoting cultural exchanges and easing tensions. Chung conducted performances of the North’s State Symphony Orchestra and the Unhasu Orchestra, according to the North’s state media.
(Yonhap News)
　
Russia Inks Pipeline Deals With Energy Chiefs of South, North Korea
The energy chiefs of South and North Korea have signed draft deals with Russia’s energy giant, Gazprom, to funnel Russian natural gas across the peninsula to supply Russian natural gas to South Korea
According to Gazprom on Thursday, the Russian energy corporation and North Korea’s Ministry of Oil Industry signed a memorandum of understanding and agreed to set up a working group on the project. Gazprom also said it had signed a “roadmap” for future gas deliveries with South Korea’s gas pipeline operator, Kogas.
There was no confirmation about whether the energy chiefs of South and North Korea had met as well.
The gas pipeline is expected to be over 11-hundred kilometers long, including 700 kilometers to run across North Korea.
(Arirang News)