SEOUL, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- South and North Korea will hold reconciliation talks in Pyongyang later this month aimed at reducing tensions between them.
The two sides are expected to meet Nov. 27-29 in what would become the second-ever meeting of defense ministers since the Korean peninsula was divided more than 50 years ago.
South Korean Defense Minister Kim Jang-soo and his counterpart Kim Il Chol have agreed to "discuss military measures to implement the Declaration for Development of North-South Relations and Peace and Prosperity," the south's Yonhap news agency reported Monday.
The declaration was signed last month by South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il at their summit in Pyongyang.
In their agreement, Roh and Kim outlined such confidence-building measures as allowing the reunions of separated families, creating a joint fishing zone and establishing a joint cross-border economic effort.
Diplomatic tensions between the two Koreas have lingered despite progress toward the North Korean government's pledge to jettison its nuclear program and provide an accounting of its atomic weapons program later this year.
