Press Release
Outcome of the Inter-Korean Working-level Meeting between the ROK Government and the DPRK Authority Concerning Gaeseong Industrial Complex
l On June 11, the North and South Korean delegations had two plenary sessions before and after noon at the Office for Economic Cooperation and Consultations and completed today's meeting.
- The two parties agreed to hold the follow-up meeting at the Office for Economic Cooperation and Consultations on June 19.
l In the keynote speech, the ROK delegation delivered our position on the pending issues related to the development of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex (GIC) including the detention of the South Korean employee in custody by the North Korean authority and withdrawal of the North's measures to restrict South Korean citizens' cross-border travel and stay in the North Korean territory as well as the current situation surrounding the Korean peninsula.
- First, we urged Pyongyang to immediately release the South Korean citizen and to inform us his whereabouts and health status and strongly demanded our delegation's access to him.
- In response to this demand, the North answered, "There is no problem with his safety."
- Second, we proposed the North to rescind its measures to restrict South Korean citizens' cross-border travel and stay in the North; to negotiate and address the problems of 3Cs (cross-border travel, communications and customs clearance); and immediately implement the Joint Committee for Entry and Stay agreed by both sides to establish in order to strengthen measures to secure the safety of citizens and to improve systems for entry and stay in both Koreas.
- Lastly, we urged the North to stop its nuclear weapons program and behaviors increasing military tensions on the Korean peninsula; and to return to inter-Korean dialogue and the six party talks.
l The North repeated the demand it made on April 21 to review and renegotiate the institutional favors that it granted to the South in proceeding with the GIC project in tandem with the changing inter-Korean relations and reality.
- First, the North delivered us its request for land royalty, land use charge, wage and tax and proposed to take the land royalty as the first issue to negotiate.
- Second, the North's delegation requested to start the construction of workers' accommodation facilities (with the capacity of 15,000 persons), daycare center and access-way to highway to be used for workers' commutes as soon as possible. The North also proposed to negotiate ways to improve working conditions and to stably manage and operate water-use system.
- Lastly, Pyongyang expressed its intention to make its best efforts to maintain the GIC project and promised to guarantee the number of newly-launched companies' workers who can enter and stay in the GIC to be kept to the same level of those of the existing companies.
Ministry of Unification
