New Family Visits Scheduled

Three days of inter-Korean talks ended Tuesday morning with specific agreements － and a general agreement to keep talking.

* One hundred family members from each side will visit Seoul and Pyongyang from Oct. 16 to Oct. 18. "We decided to consult on the establishment of permanent meeting places later at Red Cross talks, but we have not set the dates for these talks," an official said.

* The two sides will hold government-level talks Oct. 4 for the revival of tourism at Mount Kumgang, and in November they will conduct on-site investigation of the Imjin River, which is prone to flooding that affects both countries.

* A meeting for economic cooperation will be held from Oct. 23 to Oct. 26 to deal with several issues. They include the linking of the inter-Korean Kyongui railway line and the road between Munsan in the South and Kaesong in the North. The South has already completed 85 percent of its railroad construction and 79 percent of its roads; the North has not yet begun work from its side.

Also to be discussed are the construction of an industrial complex in Kaesong, north of the Demilitarized Zone; the linking of gas pipelines and railways between the two Koreas and Russia; the passage of commercial vessels in each other's territorial waters, and the joint use of fishing grounds in the East Sea (Sea of Japan) waters off North Korea.

* In addition, the two sides agreed to exchange visits by Taekwondo teams. Building on the traditional Korean martial art was mentioned at last December's cabinet-level talks, but not carried through. A North Korean team will visit Seoul next month, and a South Korean team will visit the North in November.

* Another round of ministerial-level talks will be held Oct. 28 to Oct. 31.

The joint press release issued Tuesday morning did not deal, however, with the reciprocal visit by North Korean leader Kim Jong-il to Seoul, or with the anti-terrorism statement that the South Korean government had proposed.

"The North did not adopt an anti-terrorism statement because of its traditionally friendly relations with the Arab countries," said Chon Hyun-joon, senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification.

The South Korean government, however, plans to use other channels to bring about an anti-terrorism accord with the North, because it believes it important in laying the foundation for Kim Jong-il's Seoul visit.

The North Korean delegation did not mention the visit, experts said, for strategic reasons. Pyongyang wants to discuss the missile development issue with the United States first, and it wants to resolve with the South the provision of electricity and food aid to the North, they said.

Food aid was requested by North Korea, according to Rhee Bong-jo, assistant minister of unification and spokesman for the talks. He said the issue would be dealt with in future ministerial talks or at the committee for economic cooperation.

The five-person North Korean delegation led by Kim Ryong-song returned to Pyongyang Tuesday afternoon via Beijing.

by Lee Chul-hee