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Koreas to Hold 10th High-Level Talks in P'yang

2003-04-21

South Korea and North Korea will hold a 10th round of ministerial talks April 27-29 in Pyongyang, the first high-level talks since President Roh Moo-hyun took office Feb. 25.

South Korea's head delegate for the talks, Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun, wrote to North Korean counterpart senior Cabinet councilor Kim Ryong-song to accept Saturday's offer by Pyongyang for the talks, Unification Ministry officials said.

The talks will be held right after the conclusion of talks in Beijing among North Korea, the United States and China on the North Korean nuclear row, which are set to start on Tuesday (April 22). Inter-Korean dialogue has been at a standstill since January.

"At the talks South Korea will stress the need for a peaceful resolution to the North Korean nuclear issue and explain the new administration's peace and prosperity North Korea policy," assistant unification minister for policy Shin Eon-sang said.

Economic cooperation programs between the two Koreas, such as railway connection and setting up an industrial complex in the North Korean city of Gaeseong, will constitute a major part of talks, he added.

"We will also discuss humanitarian assistance such as rice and fertilizer provision," Shin said.

South Korea has indicated it will provide about 200,000 tons of fertilizer the North after a request received last week for the May planting season. Pyongyang also requested rice and Seoul is reportedly considering a quantity of around 400,000 tons.

The focus of the cabinet-level meeting will be how much progress, if any, the two Koreas are able to make on the nuclear issue. Due to North Korea's insistence that it is a matter between Pyongyang and Washington, South Korea has been excluded from the Beijing negotiations where China will play the role of mediator.

Another likely issue of contention is the ongoing special probe into the connection between the 2000 inter-Korean summit and payments made by the Hyundai Group to North Korea.

North Korea has strongly condemned the investigation, which could reveal a sensitive link between senior officials and South Korea.

The ninth ministerial talks were held Jan. 21-24 in Seoul. At the time the two Koreas managed to produce only a perfunctory statement agreeing on the principle of peacefully resolving the nuclear standoff.

Source : www.korea.net