ROK, DPRK to hold high-level talks on August 13

SEOUL - The Republic of Korea (ROK) and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) agreed Thursday to hold high-level talks on August 13 at the border village of Panmunjom, according to Seoul's unification ministry.

The DPRK offered to hold the senior-level dialogue with the ROK at Tongilgak, a DPRK building in Panmunjom, to implement the Panmunjom Declaration.

The ROK side accepted the dialogue overtures to review the implementation of the declaration, which was signed by ROK President Moon Jae-in and top DPRK leader Kim Jong-un at their first summit on April 27 in Panmunjom.

The two leaders met again in Panmunjom on May 26 before the DPRK-US summit on June 12 in Singapore.

The DPRK side also proposed to discuss preparations for the next inter-Korean summit meeting, which Moon and Kim had agreed to hold in Pyongyang this fall, during the upcoming high-level talks between the two Koreas.

The ROK delegation will be led by Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon, the Unification Ministry said.

The ministry said the ROK planned to make an in-depth discussion with the DPRK side over issues to successfully hold the inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang and ways to speed up the implementation of the Panmunjom Declaration.

Local media speculated that another inter-Korean summit might be held as early as late August or early September to facilitate the denuclearization process of the Korean Peninsula.

The ministry noted that the ROK government will make best efforts to speedily implement the declaration via continued dialogue and cooperation, while pursuing a sustainable development in inter-Korean relations and building a permanent peace regime on the peninsula.