[Inter-Korean Rail Inspections 3] South Korea plans to hold groundbreaking ceremony before year-end

남북 연내 착공식 목표 이뤄지나? 도로협의 진전은?

Alright, so we still have two more weeks to go for the rail inspections to be completely over because they still have to do the eastern line.
But all of this is ultimately to connect the railways in the future... and Jung-hee, do we have any idea whether the groundbreaking ceremony -- will be held this year? as planned?
Well Seoul says for now it's preparing to hold the ceremony before the end of this year as agreed.
But, as we all know, the groundbreaking ceremony is for connecting and linking not only the railways but also the roads between the two Koreas,... and progress on the road inspections has stalled.
Back in August, Seoul and Pyeongyang had joint inspections on the western expressway, but nothing has been done on the eastern one.
But, even if they do, the groundbreaking ceremony will only be symbolic.
I mean, at this point, the two Koreas are not certain about how the construction will actually be done.
And kicking off construction would definitely require additional sanctions waivers so they can bring equipment and resources into the North.
Seoul also says the actual construction work will proceed in accordance with progress in North Korea's denuclearization.
So we will have to wait and see about how the groundbreaking ceremony and the actual construction will happen.
Alright, thank you for coming in, Junghee.
My pleasure.