Next Military Talks to Be Held on June 3 at Mt. Sorak


By Joint Press Corps
Staff Reporter Ryu Jin
MT. KUMGANG - South and North Korea agreed to make joint efforts to work out measures to avoid naval clashes in their first high-level military talks held at the mountain resort on Wednesday. They also agreed to hold the next round of talks at South Korea’s Mt. Sorak on June 3.

General-grade military officers from the two Koreas had intensive discussions on steps to ease tensions and build confidence on the peninsula, but failed to produce any major agreements.

Officials in Seoul said South Korean delegation proposed a package of measures to prevent clashes around the western sea border, including the establishment of a military hotline and the use of the same radio frequencies and flag signals.

North Korea expressed willingness to discuss the proposals further after closely examining them, according to sources.

The first of its kind in Korean history, yesterday’s meeting came with more significance as the two Koreas became involved in discussions regarding the military field after exchanges were made in political, economic and cultural areas.

Seoul and Pyongyang have undertaken tourism and other various joint projects since the historic summit of their leaders in June 2000. The North had previously insisted that military talks be held only with the U.S., claiming the armistice was signed between the two sides.

The five-member South Korean delegation, led by ROK Navy Commodore Park Jung-hwa, traveled to and from the North via an overland route across the heavily militarized border to meet their Northern counterparts, headed by Army Maj. Gen. An Ik-san.

The main session began at 10:00 a.m. at a small guesthouse in the resort area on the North’s east coast, located about 12 kilometers from the border with the South.

Before starting the main discussions, the uniformed military officials exchanged greetings and expressed hope for progress in their rare contact.

``Thanks for the warm welcome,’’ Park, chief of the Southern delegation, said. ``It is the rice-planting season on both sides and everything looks new. This may be because it is my first trip to the Northern side.’’

``It’s our pleasure. It is our longtime tradition to receive guests warmly,’’ Maj. Gen. An of North replied.

The main topic of the closed-door meeting was focused on joint measures to avoid armed clashes along the poorly marked western sea border where the navies of both sides had bloody gun battles in 1999 and 2002.

The Northern Limit Line (NLL), a de facto border, has been a source of conflict in recent years as warships of both sides tried to protect their fishing boats operating in the area, which is rich in crabs. North Korea does not recognize the NLL, which was set by the United Nations after the Korean War ended in 1953. It claims that the real border should be moved further south.

Direct inter-Korean military contacts are rare because North Korea has limited inter-Korean talks on economic exchanges and has preferred to deal directly with the United States on military matters.

The defense chiefs of the two Koreas met for the first time following the 2000 summit of their leaders, but no significant progress was made.

jinryu@koreatimes.co.kr