North and South Korea Agreed to hold a test run of the Trans-Korean Railway on May 17

April 23 (EIRNS)--According to the Unification Ministry of he Republic of Korea the agreement was reached during the just-concluded five-day 13th Round Meeting of the Inter-Korean Economic Cooperation Promotion Committee which ended in Pyongyang yesterday. This committee was established in 2000.

The Committee reports that the South used this "inter-Korean dialogue channel," to call on the North to implement the Feb. 13 agreements, to make stable expansion of inter-Korean economic cooperation possible.

The long-standing barriers in transit, telecommunication and customs continue, the statement said; therefore "the two sides agreed to cooperate to remove such barriers." The key measure will be to conduct the May 17 train test run, and early opening of intra-Korean roads and railways. The test run scheduled for May 2006 had been cancelled. "The two sides agreed to actively cooperate so that the military guarantee measures can be implemented before the test run of the railways. Following the test run, the South will strengthen technical aspects of the railways and actively discuss opening of the railway with North Korea," the statement says. There are intra-Korean roads in operation between the two sides, but the rail link, basically finished in 2003, has not yet been put into operation.

This rail link would finally connect the South Korean rail system to that of China, Russia, and the rest of Eurasia.

The two sides will also meet in Gaeseong May 2-4 to discuss cooperation in light industry and joint development of North Korea's mineral resources. Beginning in June, the South will provide raw materials to develop these industries in the North, after the rail test and after an executive organization for this cooperation is set up. Also on the agenda is getting the Gaeseong Industrial Complex going; promoting joint ventures in third countries -- with the North emphasizing cooperation in Russia, and other measures such as flood control, and the South providing the North with 400,000 tons of rice "on a loan basis," -- based on implementation of the Feb. 13 agreement.

The next step will be a meeting to be held April 27-28, to prepare for the railroad test run.