AFP, Seoul :
North Korean and US military officials met at the inter-Korea border Sunday to discuss repatriation of the remains of American troops killed during the Korean War, a report said.
Returning the remains of the US soldiers who perished during the 1950-53 conflict was part of a deal signed by the North’s leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump during their landmark summit last month.
The latest talks began at the border truce village of Panmunjom on Sunday, the South’s Yonhap news agency said, citing a Seoul official.
“We understand that the North-US talks on repatriation of the remains are underway,” it quoted an unnamed official as saying.
TV news footage showed vehicles with US army plates and believed to be carrying American officials heading to the heavily fortified border. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who visited Pyongyang earlier this month to flesh out details of the denuclearisation deal signed by Kim and Trump, said earlier that the meeting would take place on or around last Thursday.
The North did not show up at the border on Thursday but contacted the US on the same day to offer to meet on Sunday, US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said last week, adding “We will be ready.”
Dozens of wooden coffins to carry the American remains have reportedly been brought to the southern side of the border in recent weeks.
The White House has hailed the summit between Kim and Trump in Singapore as a major breakthrough toward disarming the isolated, nuclear-armed North in exchange for easing of sanctions and other help with economic development.
Pompeo, who met with Kim’s key aide during his latest trip to Pyongyang, insisted the talks were making progress but as soon as he left, the North’s foreign ministry berated him over his “unilateral and gangster-like” demands. Trump on Thursday signaled optimism, unveiling a letter from Kim in which the young leader hailed the “start of a meaningful journey” and tweeting “Great progress being made!”
Michael Minihan, an Air Force major general at U.S. Forces Korea who doubles as chief of staff for the U.N. Command (UNC), was representing the U.S. side and his counterpart is expected to be a military commander stationed in the DMZ, the news agency said.
A UNC official said he had no information to confirm the report, though preparations had been made for Sunday’s talks.
A U.S. Embassy spokeswoman in Seoul was not available for comment. There was no report on North Korean state media about the meeting.
North Korea and the United States conducted joint operations to recover the remains of U.S. soldiers from 1996 to 2005 but their relations soured as Pyongyang accelerated its nuclear program. In 2013, the North severed its hotline with the UNC, declaring the armistice that ended the Korean War null and void. The Pentagon has said North Korean officials have indicated in the past they have the remains of as many as 200 U.S. troops. But a U.S. military official familiar with the matter said last month it was not clear what North Korea might hand over.
U.S. forces brought some 100 wooden coffins into the DMZ last month, which will be used to transport the remains, according to Yonhap.
North Korean and US military officials met at the inter-Korea border Sunday to discuss repatriation of the remains of American troops killed during the Korean War, a report said.
Returning the remains of the US soldiers who perished during the 1950-53 conflict was part of a deal signed by the North’s leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump during their landmark summit last month.
The latest talks began at the border truce village of Panmunjom on Sunday, the South’s Yonhap news agency said, citing a Seoul official.
“We understand that the North-US talks on repatriation of the remains are underway,” it quoted an unnamed official as saying.
TV news footage showed vehicles with US army plates and believed to be carrying American officials heading to the heavily fortified border. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who visited Pyongyang earlier this month to flesh out details of the denuclearisation deal signed by Kim and Trump, said earlier that the meeting would take place on or around last Thursday.
The North did not show up at the border on Thursday but contacted the US on the same day to offer to meet on Sunday, US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said last week, adding “We will be ready.”
Dozens of wooden coffins to carry the American remains have reportedly been brought to the southern side of the border in recent weeks.
The White House has hailed the summit between Kim and Trump in Singapore as a major breakthrough toward disarming the isolated, nuclear-armed North in exchange for easing of sanctions and other help with economic development.
Pompeo, who met with Kim’s key aide during his latest trip to Pyongyang, insisted the talks were making progress but as soon as he left, the North’s foreign ministry berated him over his “unilateral and gangster-like” demands. Trump on Thursday signaled optimism, unveiling a letter from Kim in which the young leader hailed the “start of a meaningful journey” and tweeting “Great progress being made!”
Michael Minihan, an Air Force major general at U.S. Forces Korea who doubles as chief of staff for the U.N. Command (UNC), was representing the U.S. side and his counterpart is expected to be a military commander stationed in the DMZ, the news agency said.
A UNC official said he had no information to confirm the report, though preparations had been made for Sunday’s talks.
A U.S. Embassy spokeswoman in Seoul was not available for comment. There was no report on North Korean state media about the meeting.
North Korea and the United States conducted joint operations to recover the remains of U.S. soldiers from 1996 to 2005 but their relations soured as Pyongyang accelerated its nuclear program. In 2013, the North severed its hotline with the UNC, declaring the armistice that ended the Korean War null and void. The Pentagon has said North Korean officials have indicated in the past they have the remains of as many as 200 U.S. troops. But a U.S. military official familiar with the matter said last month it was not clear what North Korea might hand over.
U.S. forces brought some 100 wooden coffins into the DMZ last month, which will be used to transport the remains, according to Yonhap.
