Prompt Connection of Kyong-Ui Railroads Scheduled

It is known on April 5 that an agreement in principle to connect as soon as possible the Kyong-Ui rails is reached between the North Korean side and the special presidential adviser on diplomacy, security, and unification Lim Dong-won

When the construction of connecting the cross-border railroad line begins, the North and South relations which has been so far suspended may improve overall following the occasion. Special adviser Lim also agreed to resume the exchange of separate families visitation and the second meeting of the Economic Cooperation Promotion Committee through his visits spanning three days.

A high official in the government said, “The delegation including special adviser Lim tried to narrow the gap between the positions of the two sides on the issue of connecting Kyong-Ui rail line through working level contacts proceeded at Paekhwawon State Guesthouse in Pyongyang till the last moment” and added, ”It is expected the connection of Kyong-Ui not only builds the trust between North and South one level higher, but also functions as the foundation for solving the problems of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and resumption of North Korea-the U.S. dialogue.

Special adviser Lim returned to Seoul at the afternoon of the day through Panmunjeom and briefed to president Kim Dae-Jung on the results of the special envoy meeting, and relayed the personal letter sent by chairman of North Korean National Defense Commission Kim Jong-Il

It is known that the South and North will open a working level meeting soon as a follow-up measure of the special envoy meeting to implement signing and exchange of the Military Guarantee Agreement on Use of De-militarized Zone(DMZ), which had been agreed on February 2001 during a working-level meeting of North and South militaries.

It is also known that North and South have agreed on joint efforts to prevent any possible crisis in the Korean Peninsula.

Young-Sik Kim spear@donga.com