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| Koreas agree cross-border train | Koreas agree cross-border train |
| (about 6 hours later) | |
| Military officers from North and South Korea have given the go-ahead for the first train crossing over the heavily fortified border in more than 50 years. | Military officers from North and South Korea have given the go-ahead for the first train crossing over the heavily fortified border in more than 50 years. |
| A test-run on 17 May will see one train cross from the North on the east coast and another cross from the South on the west coast, officials said. | A test-run on 17 May will see one train cross from the North on the east coast and another cross from the South on the west coast, officials said. |
| It will be the first such crossing since rail links between the two were severed during the 1950-53 Korean War. | It will be the first such crossing since rail links between the two were severed during the 1950-53 Korean War. |
| Tracks have been reconnected as part of recent reconciliation projects. | Tracks have been reconnected as part of recent reconciliation projects. |
| Generals from the two Koreas agreed to provide military security for the trial during talks held in the truce village of Panmunjom - the first such high-level talks for a year. | |
| Despite agreement on the trains, the talks continued overnight as the two sides worked on the wording of a joint statement to be released on Friday. | |
| South Korea's Yonhap news agency said the talks were extended because North Korea wanted to discuss the countries' disputed western maritime border. | |
| Under the planned one-off run, two passenger trains will travel about 25km (16 miles) and terminate their journeys a few kilometres inside the opposite territory. | Under the planned one-off run, two passenger trains will travel about 25km (16 miles) and terminate their journeys a few kilometres inside the opposite territory. |
| Reports say Seoul has been pressing to make the crossings more than a one-off event - eventually sending cargo and passenger trains to China, Russia and areas of Europe and Asia. | Reports say Seoul has been pressing to make the crossings more than a one-off event - eventually sending cargo and passenger trains to China, Russia and areas of Europe and Asia. |
| Mutual advantages | Mutual advantages |
| A trial-crossing planned last year was cancelled by North Korea after the South rejected its demand that the disputed maritime border on the west coast be redrawn. | A trial-crossing planned last year was cancelled by North Korea after the South rejected its demand that the disputed maritime border on the west coast be redrawn. |
| KOREAN BORDER 240km long and 4km wide, the DMZ takes up about 0.5% of Korean peninsulaN Korea has 1.1m man army along the border. S Korea and US forces total more than 700,000 | KOREAN BORDER 240km long and 4km wide, the DMZ takes up about 0.5% of Korean peninsulaN Korea has 1.1m man army along the border. S Korea and US forces total more than 700,000 |
| Pyongyang does not recognise the border drawn by the United Nations at the end of the Korean War, which has resulted in naval clashes over the rich fishing grounds. | Pyongyang does not recognise the border drawn by the United Nations at the end of the Korean War, which has resulted in naval clashes over the rich fishing grounds. |
| The North raised the sea border issue at this week's talks, but appears not to have made it a condition to agree on security arrangements for the rail test. | The North raised the sea border issue at this week's talks, but appears not to have made it a condition to agree on security arrangements for the rail test. |
| Although the two sides are still technically at war - the peace treaty to officially end it was never signed - links have slowly been re-established in recent years as the South has sought to engage with its secretive neighbour. | Although the two sides are still technically at war - the peace treaty to officially end it was never signed - links have slowly been re-established in recent years as the South has sought to engage with its secretive neighbour. |
| If and when the rail link finally opens, there are obvious advantages for both sides. | If and when the rail link finally opens, there are obvious advantages for both sides. |
| For South Korea, it would mean that goods produced using cheap North Korean labour, in a joint industrialised zone to the north of the border, could be more easily transported out of the country. | For South Korea, it would mean that goods produced using cheap North Korean labour, in a joint industrialised zone to the north of the border, could be more easily transported out of the country. |
| For the North, it would boost the tourist trade, providing a link to a mountain resort on the east coast popular with South Koreans. | For the North, it would boost the tourist trade, providing a link to a mountain resort on the east coast popular with South Koreans. |