Inter-Korean Rail Link Put on Hold

An agreed-upon plan to conduct a pilot operation of the Gyeongeui and Donghae lines between the two Koreas has been canceled after the North notified the South of its decision to revoke it yesterday.

In a telephone message to the South under the name of the head of working-level talks concerning the train and road link, North Korea said that its military authority didn’t guarantee military security on the test train operation and that the South’s far-right conservative pro-American group is creating an unstable situation, forcing the North to withdraw from the pilot train operation.

Following the invalidation of the plan, it is now impossible for former President Kim Dae-jung to take a train trip to North Korea scheduled for the end of June.

In response to the annulment by North Korea, the South is said to be considering reducing or suspending its aid of light industry raw material, rice, and fertilizer to North Korea.

Prior to this, the South informed the North of its plan on May 23 to deliver the list of the South Koreans to board the train in order to make sure North Korea’s military authority guaranteed military security, but the North, in the telephone message that day, rejected the South’s suggestion, saying, “As long as fundamental issues such as naval clashes in the West Sea remain unsolved, no issues can be resolved.”

There is criticism even within the government as it didn’t reveal the fact that the North’s military authority had told it in advance that if the Northern Limit Line (NLL) was not re-demarcated, it would reject the test train operation. Therefore, the South Korean government became the target of criticism as it didn’t reveal the fact until it was notified of the North’s cancellation.

Some argued that the government made an incorrect grave strategic policy decision, due to its obsession with the success of the test operation.

A government official remarked, “The government can’t get away from criticism that it only maintained optimism all the way long while not clearly grasping the intention of the North’s military authority.”

At a press conference, Shin Eon-sang, a deputy minister at South Korea`s Unification Ministry, announced a ministry statement, saying, “The South deeply regrets the North’s unilateral delay of the test train operation. In particular, it is not proper for North Korea to unreasonably state the South’s situation.”

The government, however, will go ahead with its plan to carry out the planed inter-Korean ministerial meeting and South-North economic cooperation committee.

Myoung-Gun Lee Sang-Ho Yun gun43@donga.com ysh1005@donga.com