Inter-Korean Summit to Focus on Economic Cooperation

The forthcoming summit between South Korean president Kim Dae-jung and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) leader Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang on June 12-14 this year is expected to center on economic cooperation rather than political and military issues, analysts in Seoul on Monday.

Both Seoul and Pyongyang believe the economic complementarity and a closer economic cooperation will help them understand each other and build mutual confidence after a 55-year-old division of the Korean peninsula, laying a foundation for future talks on political issues such as national reunification.

For its part, South Korea, with access to the DPRK's cheap labor and comparatively rich natural resources, will gain a new market for its products and will save outlay and boost exports in trade with China and Russia.

Meanwhile, the DPRK, whose national income is around 25 times and trade 156 times smaller than South Korean, can introduce technology and capital from South Korea to improve its infrastructure and other industries.

In his New Year's speech this year, President Kim proposed that the two sides form an economic community for cooperation from commodities to industries, from transportation and energy to agriculture and financial services.

The DPRK must have realized that no countries in the world can help it better than South Korea in the economic respect, said Kim Bee-tai, senior researcher of South Korea's Research Institute for Northeast Asian Community.

A closer inter-Korean economic relationship will help alleviate tension on the Korean peninsula and reduce military spending on both sides, the researcher said.

It will help raise the credibility of the DPRK in the international community and attract foreign investments.

It will also lessen cost for future reunification by narrowing the economic gap between the two sides, said the researcher.

However, some observers warned that the upcoming summit is unlikely to produce much, as many unpredictable factors exist.





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