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Korean PMs 'agree rail-link deal' Two Koreas agree rail timetable
(about 15 hours later)
A regular freight train service over the heavily-armed border between North and South Korea could start before the end of the year, officials say. North and South Korea have agreed a timetable for establishing cargo rail services between their two nations, the first for over 50 years.
The deal, on the second day of talks between prime ministers from the two countries, marks the first agreed schedule for the train link. Trains will begin crossing the border on 11 December, connecting South Korea with an industrial zone in the North.
The South has pushed for reliable transport links to supply the factories its firms run in the North. The agreement came after a three-day meeting in Seoul between South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and his North Korean counterpart Kim Yong-il.
It follows an agreement made last month at a summit of the countries' leaders. The talks were the first between prime ministers of the two Koreas since 1992.
'Shared understanding' They followed a historic summit last month between leaders of the two nations, only the second since the Korean peninsula was partitioned more than five decades ago.
North Korean Prime Minister Kim Yong-il and his counterpart from the South, Han Duck-soo, are spending three days in discussions in the South's capital, Seoul. The leaders signed an accord calling for greater peace and economic partnership, and the prime ministers have been using their meeting to implement some of the proposals.
'Expand investment'
There is currently no rail service between North and South Korea. In May, two trains crossed the border in a test-run and South Korea has since been pushing for more regular rail links.
THE TWO KOREAS 1910: Korean Peninsula colonised by Japan1945: Divided into US-backed South and Soviet-backed North1950-1953: Korean War, no peace deal signed1987: North Korea bombs a South airliner, killing 1151990s: South Korea introduces conciliatory Sunshine Policy2000: Kim Jong-il and Kim Dae-jung hold first leaders' summit2007: Kim Jong-il and Roh Moo-hyun hold second leaders' summit History of the Korean WarTHE TWO KOREAS 1910: Korean Peninsula colonised by Japan1945: Divided into US-backed South and Soviet-backed North1950-1953: Korean War, no peace deal signed1987: North Korea bombs a South airliner, killing 1151990s: South Korea introduces conciliatory Sunshine Policy2000: Kim Jong-il and Kim Dae-jung hold first leaders' summit2007: Kim Jong-il and Roh Moo-hyun hold second leaders' summit History of the Korean War
The South's Unification Ministry spokesman, Kim Nam-shik, said the two sides were now trying to set a specific date for starting the rail service. Under the deal, cargo trains will run along a 25km (16 mile) section of track linking Munsan in the South with Bongdong in the North.
The 25km (16 mile) track runs from the heavily-guarded border to a joint industrial complex in the North's city of Kaesong. This would improve access to the Kaesong industrial complex, a joint economic zone on the North Korean side of the border.
"Both sides shared an understanding that it would be meaningful in further vitalising the Kaesong industrial complex," said the spokesman. South Korea has also agreed to repair roads and railways linking the complex with other parts of North Korea, and to help with the development of a shipping district in the North's port city of Haeju.
The meeting - the first at prime ministerial level for 15 years - follows October's historic summit in Pyongyang between the two countries' leaders. "The agreements set the stage for our companies to expand investment in the North and substantially contribute to its economic development," the South Korean prime minister said in a statement.
Divided families The two sides also agreed to begin negotiations on setting up a joint fishing zone around a disputed sea border in the first half of next year.
The summit between the North's Kim Jong-il and the South's President Roh Moo-hyun was only the second such meeting since the Korean peninsula was partitioned over half a century ago. The area has been the scene of serious naval clashes in the past.
The two leaders signed an accord calling for greater peace and economic partnership, despite the two countries remaining technically at war with each other. The two Koreas have been divided for more than 50 years and remain technically at war, but in recent years ties have improved under Seoul's policy of economic engagement.
They also agreed in principle for the regular cargo rail service to be established. Pyongyang's broader international ties also appear to be taking a turn for the better.
The prime ministers are using their meeting to discuss more specific proposals. In February, North Korea agreed to end its nuclear programme in return for aid. It is currently in the process of disabling its main nuclear reactor at Yongbyon.
One key issue is the establishment of a joint fishing area around the disputed western sea border - the scene of naval clashes in the past - and a new economic zone around the North Korean port of Haeju.
The South also hopes to increase the number of reunion meetings for families separated when the peninsula was split.
Prime ministerial meetings between the two Koreas were suspended in 1992 amid growing concern over Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions.