Friday, September 28, 2018

S. Korea hopes to begin railway inspections next month

The South Korean government says it hopes to soon begin inspections of railways and roads that span the inter-Korean border. But concerns have risen that reconnecting the routes could lead to violations of international sanctions against North Korea.


Bruce Harrison reports from Seoul.


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Reconnecting the idle railways and roads is one of the goals from last week's summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.


Seoul and Pyongyang want to begin inspections of the routes next month and reopen them by the end of the year.


The South Korean government says it will first consult with the United Nations Command before doing that.


Last month, the UN command abruptly rejected the same request for inspections. The command said Seoul didn't give proper notification.


But critics of the delayed inspection believe the U.S. is trying to find excuses to keep the project from going ahead until Kim makes more progress on giving up his nuclear weapons.


Backers of inspections believe a train crossing the border would be deeply symbolic for inter-Korean cooperation.


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