THREATS FROM NORTH KOREA: Ministers of Seoul, Pyeongyang stress connecting transport network would bring prosperity

South and North Korea held a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday at Panmun station, for linking and modernizing their railways and roads.
There were 100 participants from each side, mainly comprised of the two Korea's key officials in charge of transport and inter-Korean affairs.
Also at the ceremony was the Executive Secretary of the UN's Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific as well as some senior railway and road officials from Russia, China and Mongolia and they expressed determination to cooperate in forming a Eurasian rail network.
The groundbreaking ceremony, however, was a symbolic launch of the road and railway project, not an actual start of construction, considering the ongoing denuclearization talks and existing sanctions on North Korea.


Voice of America reported Wednesday that the State Department's strategy report on East Asia and the Pacific shows the U.S. government is working to achieve Pyeongyang's complete and verifiable denuclearization through negotiations.
The report named the communist state's nuclear program as one of the top issues to be resolved, together with the regional players, and that sanctions will be maintained until the hermit kingdom fully gives up its nukes.
While that is the ultimate goal, the report emphasized the short-term goal is to first freeze North Korea's nuclear development, stop the production of fissile material and form an action plan for the early steps of denuclearization


South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha says that North Korea and the U.S. remain fully committed to dialogue, and that the two sides are continuing their denuclearization talks.
In an interview with local news outlet Hankyoreh, Kang said Pyeongyang and Washington are discussing possible dates for their next high-level talks.
She emphasized the need for the meeting to include guarantees for the two sides and define what those guarantees should be.
As for the sanctions on the North, Kang said Seoul and Washington will need to coordinate closely on the appropriate time to lift the sanctions depending on how much progress is made on the irreversible denuclearization of North Korea.

Source: Arirang News