Post by bot on Jun 5, 2004 20:23:11 GMT -5
North Korea, South Korea Agree to Avert Navy Clashes (Update1)
June 4 (Bloomberg) -- North Korea and South Korea agreed after all-night talks to prevent clashes between their navies in fishing grounds, the South Korean Defense Ministry said.
The two countries, technically still at war, agreed to stop patrol boats and ships firing upon each other or exerting physical force upon non-military vessels, the ministry said in a statement. They will also take measures to reduce tension on the border, including halting propaganda broadcasts.
North Korea and South Korea will hold ``working-level talks in the near future to finalize the details,'' the statement said, citing Colonel Moon Sung Muk, a spokesman for the South Korean delegation. They will continue top military level talks in order to ease military tension, it said.
The agreement aims to prevent incidents during the crab- fishing season that started last month. Clashes occurred in 1999 and 2002 as the two navies tried to protect their fishermen in the Yellow Sea. South Korea has been maintaining contacts with North Korea amid an international dispute over North Korea's nuclear development program.
South Korea, along with the U.S., China, Japan and Russia, is trying to persuade North Korea to abandon the program.
The military delegations, led by South Korean Rear Admiral Park Jeong Hwa and North Korea's General An Ik San, held five meetings over 18 hours since 10 a.m. yesterday at the Kensington Stars Hotel in Mount Sorak, located on South Korea's east coast.
A meeting May 26 was the first time generals from the two nations met since the end of the 1950-1953 Korean War. The countries never signed a peace agreement after the conflict.
Border Tensions
The two sides will remove pamphlets and billboards along the 38th parallel divide, the most heavily fortified border in the world, guarded by land mines, barbed wire and 1.7 million soldiers. The delegations agreed that navy vessels will communicate on radio to resolve misunderstandings about their activities in the Yellow Sea.
The procedures will take place over two months starting June 15, to commemorate the fourth anniversary of an historic meeting between then South Korean President Kim Dae Jung and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, the South Korean Defense Ministry said.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Heejin Koo in Seoul at hjkoo@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Paul Tighe at ptighe@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: June 4, 2004 01:33 EDT
June 4 (Bloomberg) -- North Korea and South Korea agreed after all-night talks to prevent clashes between their navies in fishing grounds, the South Korean Defense Ministry said.
The two countries, technically still at war, agreed to stop patrol boats and ships firing upon each other or exerting physical force upon non-military vessels, the ministry said in a statement. They will also take measures to reduce tension on the border, including halting propaganda broadcasts.
North Korea and South Korea will hold ``working-level talks in the near future to finalize the details,'' the statement said, citing Colonel Moon Sung Muk, a spokesman for the South Korean delegation. They will continue top military level talks in order to ease military tension, it said.
The agreement aims to prevent incidents during the crab- fishing season that started last month. Clashes occurred in 1999 and 2002 as the two navies tried to protect their fishermen in the Yellow Sea. South Korea has been maintaining contacts with North Korea amid an international dispute over North Korea's nuclear development program.
South Korea, along with the U.S., China, Japan and Russia, is trying to persuade North Korea to abandon the program.
The military delegations, led by South Korean Rear Admiral Park Jeong Hwa and North Korea's General An Ik San, held five meetings over 18 hours since 10 a.m. yesterday at the Kensington Stars Hotel in Mount Sorak, located on South Korea's east coast.
A meeting May 26 was the first time generals from the two nations met since the end of the 1950-1953 Korean War. The countries never signed a peace agreement after the conflict.
Border Tensions
The two sides will remove pamphlets and billboards along the 38th parallel divide, the most heavily fortified border in the world, guarded by land mines, barbed wire and 1.7 million soldiers. The delegations agreed that navy vessels will communicate on radio to resolve misunderstandings about their activities in the Yellow Sea.
The procedures will take place over two months starting June 15, to commemorate the fourth anniversary of an historic meeting between then South Korean President Kim Dae Jung and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, the South Korean Defense Ministry said.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Heejin Koo in Seoul at hjkoo@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Paul Tighe at ptighe@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: June 4, 2004 01:33 EDT