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North-South Ministerial Talks Open

Korean Central News Agency of DPRK via Korea News Service (KNS)

    Pyongyang, September 14 (KCNA) -- The 16th north-south ministerial talks opened in Pyongyang Wednesday. Attending the talks were the delegation of the north side led by Kwon Ho Ung, senior councilor of the DPRK Cabinet, and the delegation of the south side with Minister of Unification Jong Tong Yong as chief delegate.
    The head of the north side's delegation in his main speech said that both sides should fulfill responsibilities for improving the north-south relations and promoting the cause of reunification on the basis of achievements made after the 15th north-south ministerial talks and set forth new practical proposals to do so. He proposed to the north and south authorities to take important measures to do away with all sorts of face-saving practices in the idea of "By our nation itself," among other things.
    Recalling that leader Kim Jong Il, when receiving several figures including the minister of Unification of south Korea on June 17, urged fellow countrymen to refrain from practices to save faces and do away with them in a bold manner, he stressed that this is the most just and realistic teaching reflecting the requirements of the era after the publication of the June 15 joint declaration.
    The north and the south refrained from such practices at the 15th north-south ministerial talks and at the August 15 grand national festival, thus bringing about significant progress in the bilateral relations, he said.
    There still remain between the north and the south not a few face-saving practices such as negating the dialogue partner and treating it with hostility and absolutizing the differing ideologies and ideals, he noted, stressing the need to completely get rid of such outdated conception and practices, a hurdle lying in the way of improving the bilateral relations, and certainly solve the issue of recognizing and respecting each other's system in practice, drawing on the good experience already gained in practice. Then he proposed to the north and the south to unconditionally suspend all military actions through which one side threatens the other side together with foreign forces in contravention of the June 15 era.
    If the south side truly stands for the improved north-south relations and peace, it should put the wish, desire and interests of the nation above all and take a decision to rely on the strength of the nation itself, without reading other's face, he said. Then he proposed to the compatriots in the north and the south to pull down barriers obstructive to promoting the common interests of the nation and its uniform development.
    It would be difficult to remove all of them at one time, given the deep-rooted misunderstanding and mistrust between the north and the south that have lasted for more than half a century but it would be reasonable to begin with settling those problems they deem possible and essential, he said, proposing to realize this in inter-Korean economic cooperation, to begin with.
    The chief delegate of the south side in a speech said it was of historic significance that Koreans in the south and the north and abroad jointly held grand festivals in celebration of June 15 and August 15 irrespective of civilians and authorities, the first of their kind in the history of national division.
    Looking back on the day he was received by Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang last June, he noted that this instilled into the Korean nation conviction and confidence in the sustainable progress in the south-north relations and an independent solution to the national issue.
    It is necessary to make concerted efforts to put an end to the Cold War on the Korean Peninsula and build a lasting peace mechanism without delay, he said, adding that is the way of protecting the nation's dignity and consolidating the achievements made in the past five years in a more meaningful manner.
    The chief delegate and delegates of the south side set forth a series of issues to be discussed at the current talks.