TEST SAILING AT HANGANG RIVER ESTUARY

[Anchor Lead]

South Korea started operating private ships near the Hangang River estuary adjacent to the West Sea. The two Korea had previously agreed to use the neutral river area together. The South Korea government again urged the North to resume talks on all issues anywhere anytime.

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A boat with unified Korean flags sails slowly past the Ganghwa Bridge. The city of Gaeseong in North Korea is visible across the river. Five-hundred meters ahead is neutral waters near the Hangang River estuary, a so-called demilitarized zone on water. his is the first time a private vessel crossed the fishing limit line.

[Soundbite] Lee In-young(Minister of Unification) : "This is where we can attempt to make a peaceful approach to N. Korea in a more flexible and creative way. Our government will work on those peaceful ideas."

This downstream area of the Hangang River connecting the West Sea and Seoul was used to transport goods and people since the Joseon period. But the division of the country barred private vessels from accessing the area.

[Soundbite] "Civilians cannot enter that area."

Through the October 4th inter-Korean declaration in 2007, Seoul and Pyongyang agreed to get this area ready for joint use. And designated the estuary as joint use waters in the military agreement signed on September 19th 2018. Two months later, the two sides conducted joint waterway studies and unveiled a nautical chart. However, no further progress was made since the Pyongyang-Washington summit in Hanoi fell through the following year. Experts say the Hangang River estuary is an area crucial to resolving the current deadlock in cross-border relations. The September 19th military agreement had already designated it as a joint use area and resolved all issues such as ownership dispute.

[Soundbite] Lee Si-woo(Photographer) : "Ownerships of former residents in the DMZ cannot be ignored. But the river is free from such ownership disputes so it’s easier to access the river."

The South Korean government is looking forward to reopening the Hangang River estuary as the first cooperation project since the restoration of the inter-Korean hotline.