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An inter-Korean freight train on the Gyeongui Line from Munsan Station to Bongdong Station (Kaesong) departs from Doransan Station (in South Korea) on Dec. 11

South and North Korea are scheduled to hold meetings of their railway cooperation subcommittee on June 26 and road cooperation subcommittee on June 28 in Panmunjeom to discuss the matter of linking the Donghae (East Sea) and Gyeongui (Seoul-Sinuiju) railway line and highways, the South Korean Ministry of Unification said on June 25. A forestry cooperation subcommittee meeting is also scheduled for July 4.

The railway cooperation subcommittee meeting on June 26 at the Peace House on the South Korean side of Panmunjeom is be attended by three-person delegations from each side, respectively headed by South Korean second vice minister of land, infrastructure and transport Kim Jeong-ryeol and North Korean vice railroad minister Kim Yun-hyok. The road cooperation subcommittee member is scheduled for June 28 at the Unification House (Tongilgak) on Panmunjeom’s North Korean side, with two additional three-person delegations respectively headed by South Korean second vice minister of land, infrastructure and transport Kim Jeong-ryeol and North Korean vice minister for environmental protection Pak Yong-ho.

The forestry cooperation subcommittee meeting on July 4 is to be attended by three-person delegations headed by Korea Forest Service vice minister Ryu Kwang-soo on the South Korean side and environmental protection ministry deputy general director Kim Song-jun. The location has not yet been decided.

The South Korean Ministry of Unification said, “The railway, road, and forestry cooperation subcommittee meetings will be a setting to faithfully discuss implementation of the Panmunjeom Declaration, laying the foundation for the continued advancement of inter-Korean relations and the establishment of permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula.”

The railway, road, and forestry cooperation subcommittee meetings are being held in accordance with the Panmunjeom Declaration of Apr. 27 and an agreement at high-level inter-Korean talks on June 1. In the Panmunjeom Declaration, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un agreed to “actively implement the projects previously agreed in the 2007 October 4 Declaration, in order to promote balanced economic growth and co-prosperity of the nation,” including an agreement “as a first step” to “adopt practical steps towards the connection and modernization of the railways and roads on the eastern transportation corridor as well as between Seoul and Sinuiju for their utilization.”

At the June 1 talks, the two sides agreed to hold railway, road, and forestry cooperation subcommittee meetings “in late June.”

By Lee Je-hun, senior staff writer

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