North, South Korea hold rare talks
North and South Korean officials sat down yesterday for rare talks aimed at setting up a sustainable high-level dialogue that has constantly eluded the two rivals.
The meeting at the border truce village of Panmunjom began shortly before 1:00pm and marked the first inter-governmental interaction since August when the two sides met to defuse a crisis that had pushed them to the brink of an armed conflict.
That meeting ended with a joint agreement that included a commitment to resume high-level talks, although no precise timeline was given.
Yesterday's talks in Panmunjom will try to avoid a repetition of that failure by thrashing out an agenda, a venue and such protocol issues as who should attend the full-fledged dialogue.
The start of the talks was delayed by several hours due to a problem with the communication links that allow senior officials in Seoul and Pyongyang to monitor proceedings.
After an initial round lasting about 90 minutes, both sides took a break to confer with their respective capitals, a Unification Ministry official said.
"The mood was sincere, but there were differences," he acknowledged.
Although any dialogue between the two Koreas is generally welcomed as a step in the right direction, precedent offers little hope of a successful outcome.
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