Koreas Seek Common Fishery Zone

Army Col. Moon Sung-mook, left, head of South Korea's three-member delegation, shakes hands with his North Korean counterpart Pak Rim-su before the inter-Korean working-level military talks at the truce village of Panmunjeom, Monday. / Korea Times

By Yoon Won-sup
Staff Reporter

South and North Korea Monday agreed to hold generals' talks on the southern side of the truce village of Panmunjeom from July 24-26, the Ministry of National Defense said Monday.

The agreement was made at the inter-Korean working-level military talks in Panmunjeom.

However, they failed to reach an agreement on measures to prevent possible naval conflict in the West Sea and guaranteeing military safeguards for cross-border business activities, ministry officials said.

The two sides agreed on the need to set a common fishery zone, a possible direct sea route for cargo ships across the West Sea border, the Northern Limit Line (NLL), and joint developments in the mouth of the Han River.

But they failed to sign an agreement on details _ as in their last meeting last month _ due to a lack of progress on differences over the NLL.

The NLL, drawn by the U.S.-led United Nations Command at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War, has served as a de facto maritime border between the two Koreas. Disputes over the NLL have caused scores of casualties on both sides.

The South wanted the common fishery zone in the northern part of the NLL while the North preferred the zone below the NLL, according to the ministry.

Army Col. Moon Sung-mook, head of South Korea's three-member delegation, made it clear that the sea borderline is not a matter for discussion.

``Our position is the same, that the two Koreas should take tension-reducing measures to prevent naval clashes in the western waters, while the NLL is maintained,'' Moon told reporters.

yoonwonsup@koreatimes.co.kr

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