Squabble on equipment delivery slows work on rail linking

Negotiations on logistics for linking the two Koreas by cross-border railroads have hit rough spots, jeopardizing the agreed-upon construction schedules. The two sides had agreed to complete the Gyeongui Line, connecting South Korea's capital city and North Korea's northwestern city of Sinuiju, by the end of this year.

But South Korea's Unification Ministry reported Thursday that the first shipment of equipment and materials was not sent to North Korea as scheduled. South Korea has agreed to lend materials and equipment worth 50 billion won ($41.7 million) to the North. The first shipment was scheduled to be delivered before the end of September.

"Because we could not agree on the type of equipment, the first shipment was not sent," Shin Hye-seong, a Unification Ministry official, said.

How to deliver the materials and equipment was a matter of contention last month when the two sides agreed to proceed with the project. The North demanded the aid all at once; the South said supplies would be delivered gradually as the construction proceeded. The negotiators eventually agreed to send the material gradually, with the first delivery by the end of September.

The postponed shipment is expected to hinder the construction schedule of the Gyeongui railroad in particular; the deadline for completion of the railroad is only two months off. Another railroad running along the peninsula's east coast is to be relinked by September next year.

South Korea has done most of its part of the Gyeongui Line; a 1.8-kilometer section inside the Demilitarized Zone remains to be completed. North Korea has to work on more than 15 kilometers of railroad. It has informed the South that it has removed mines from 30 percent of its segment. It is now working with its own materials and equipment, Kang Yeong-seo of the Unification Ministry said. The two sides will discuss the railroad project at the North's Mount Geumgang from Saturday until Monday.

Other sets of talks coming up are led by a minister-level meeting in Pyeongyang from Oct. 19 to 22. Two sets of economic talks will take place in North Korea's industrial city of Gaeseong. From Oct. 25 to 27, the two sides will discuss plans to build an industrial complex in the city. From Oct. 28 to 30, officials will discuss flood prevention measures for the cross-border Imjin River. Red Cross talks, set for mid-October, have been delayed until Oct. 30 at North Korea's request.

by Ser Myo-ja