S-N Ministerial Talks to Take Place Next Week
2003-07-03
South and North Korea will hold a new round of ministerial talks in Seoul next week, despite the tension over the North's nuclear weapons program.
The two sides on Wednesday (July 2) confirmed an agreement to hold the high-level meetings July 9-12 through liaison officials working at the border village of Panmunjeom, a Unification Ministry official in Seoul said.
Ministerial talks are the highest-level channel of dialogue between the two Koreas. They are supposed to handle inter-Korean affairs. The nuclear issue has been discussed at past meetings.
In Wednesday's border contact, South Korea informed North Korea that the protocol for next week's meeting will be simplified, ministry officials said.
"We notified the North that the South will not mobilize many vehicles and will curtail some events," an official said. Seoul will not invite dignitaries for a dinner it plans to host in honor of the North Korean delegation. Hundreds of local political, social and religious leaders were invited to such dinners in the past.
Meanwhile, a South Korean delegation on Wednesday started three-day "shuttle" talks going to and from Gaeseong for discussions on restoring inter-Korean railroads.
Source : www.korea.net
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