S.Korea, DPRK begin Red Cross talks to discuss reunion of separated families

591

SEOUL, June 22, 2018 (BSS/XINHUA) – South Korea and the Democratic
People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) launched Red Cross talks Friday to discuss
humanitarian issues, including reunion of Korean families separated across
the inter-Korean border, Seoul’s unification ministry said.

Delegations from the two sides began the talks at 10 a.m. local time (0100
GMT) as scheduled at a hotel in the DPRK’s scenic resort mountain of Kumgang.

The South Korean delegation went to the hotel along a land route in the
eastern region. The plenary session lasted for 45 minutes.

A key agenda on the dialogue table would be the reunion of the separated
families. South Korean President Moon Jae-in and top DPRK leader Kim Jong Un
agreed to hold the reunion around Aug. 15, after holding their first summit
on April 27.

If the reunion is held as agreed upon around Aug. 15, the day to mark the
73rd anniversary of the Korean Peninsula’s liberation from the 1910-45
Japanese colonial rule, it would be the first such event since October 2015.

Other discussions would be ways to fundamentally resolve the humanitarian
issues of people across the two Koreas.

The delegations were expected to discuss the examination on whether all
the separated families are alive, exchange of letters, and visits by the
families to their hometowns across the border.