Two Koreas to hold high-level talks at Panmunjom to plan next inter-Korean summit
- 6 years ago
Our top story this morning...
The two Koreas are holding their fourth round of high-level talks at the truce village of Panmunjom.
According to the government here in Seoul, the talks are to check on how well South and North Korea are implementing their April summit agreement dubbed the Panmunjom Declaration... and to discuss the next inter-Korean summit.
Expectations are high that these talks could rubberstamp the specific time and location of the third inter-Korean summit of the year.
For more, let's connect to our unification ministry correspondent Oh Jung-hee who's standing by at the Office for Inter-Korean Dialogue.
Jung-hee, fill us in....
Mark, we're expecting the high-level talks to have just started at the border village of Panmunjom.
Seoul has a four-member delegation led by Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon... plus three others, including one from the presidential office of Cheongwadae.
Pyongyang has sent a five-member delegation that's led by the head of its reunification committee, Ri Son-gwon, and includes three senior officials in charge of environment, railways, and economic cooperation.
Before leaving Seoul, the South Korean delegation said the two Koreas will be discussing how much they've implemented the Panmunjom Declaration, which will cover the two side's cooperation in various fields and holding another summit in the fall.
The delegation added it may have some things to hear from the North about international sanctions, but highlighted inter-Korean relations and Pyongyang-Washington relations will have to progress together.
Take a look.
"We hope to form a virtuous cycle between inter-Korean relations and North Korea-U.S. relations with the goal being the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Denuclearization and an improvement of Seoul-Pyongyang relations should promote one another."
We hope that can be the case, because progress seems to have slowed in recent months.
With that in mind,... I'd like to hear your thoughts on the prospects for today's talks.
Can we really expect to have the date and location of the next inter-Korean summit determined today?
Seoul's presidential office has been sounding very upbeat...
You're right,
When the leaders of Seoul and Pyongyang first met in April, they agreed President Moon Jae-in would visit Pyongyang in the fall.
But reports arose quite recently that the summit could be held as early as late THIS MONTH and the North's proposal of high-level talks last week added to the optimism.
At a press briefing over the weekend, the nation's top office spokesperson said,... through today's talks, he expects the two Koreas to agree on the summit's date and location, as well as the size of South Korean delegation to visit the North.
He added the two Koreas have been communicating through various channels, and his expectations are grounded in fact.
So, if today's high-level talks succeeds in setting some specific schedules of the next and third inter-Korean
The two Koreas are holding their fourth round of high-level talks at the truce village of Panmunjom.
According to the government here in Seoul, the talks are to check on how well South and North Korea are implementing their April summit agreement dubbed the Panmunjom Declaration... and to discuss the next inter-Korean summit.
Expectations are high that these talks could rubberstamp the specific time and location of the third inter-Korean summit of the year.
For more, let's connect to our unification ministry correspondent Oh Jung-hee who's standing by at the Office for Inter-Korean Dialogue.
Jung-hee, fill us in....
Mark, we're expecting the high-level talks to have just started at the border village of Panmunjom.
Seoul has a four-member delegation led by Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon... plus three others, including one from the presidential office of Cheongwadae.
Pyongyang has sent a five-member delegation that's led by the head of its reunification committee, Ri Son-gwon, and includes three senior officials in charge of environment, railways, and economic cooperation.
Before leaving Seoul, the South Korean delegation said the two Koreas will be discussing how much they've implemented the Panmunjom Declaration, which will cover the two side's cooperation in various fields and holding another summit in the fall.
The delegation added it may have some things to hear from the North about international sanctions, but highlighted inter-Korean relations and Pyongyang-Washington relations will have to progress together.
Take a look.
"We hope to form a virtuous cycle between inter-Korean relations and North Korea-U.S. relations with the goal being the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Denuclearization and an improvement of Seoul-Pyongyang relations should promote one another."
We hope that can be the case, because progress seems to have slowed in recent months.
With that in mind,... I'd like to hear your thoughts on the prospects for today's talks.
Can we really expect to have the date and location of the next inter-Korean summit determined today?
Seoul's presidential office has been sounding very upbeat...
You're right,
When the leaders of Seoul and Pyongyang first met in April, they agreed President Moon Jae-in would visit Pyongyang in the fall.
But reports arose quite recently that the summit could be held as early as late THIS MONTH and the North's proposal of high-level talks last week added to the optimism.
At a press briefing over the weekend, the nation's top office spokesperson said,... through today's talks, he expects the two Koreas to agree on the summit's date and location, as well as the size of South Korean delegation to visit the North.
He added the two Koreas have been communicating through various channels, and his expectations are grounded in fact.
So, if today's high-level talks succeeds in setting some specific schedules of the next and third inter-Korean