ROK to consult with DPRK on sending equipment for video reunions of separated families

SEOUL - Unification ministry of the Republic of Korea (ROK) said Monday that it will consult with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on sending equipment for video reunions of Korean families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Lee Eugene, deputy spokesperson of the ROK's unification ministry, told a press briefing that the ROK has recently completed the purchase of supporting equipment for video reunions.

The deputy spokesperson said the ministry had planned to consult with the DPRK side on how and when to deliver the equipment, such as camcorders and other display devices, to Pyongyang.

The ROK recently started renovation works for 13 video reunion centers across the country, planning to end the works by the end of this month and test-operate the centers for the next two weeks.

The country has secured sanctions waivers from the UN Security council to send the video reunion equipment to the DPRK's reunion center in Pyongyang.

ROK President Moon Jae-in and top DPRK leader Kim Jong Un agreed in their third summit in Pyongyang in September last year to hold video reunions and exchange video letters for the separated families.

People from the two Koreas have been banned from meeting and contacting each other since the three-year Korean War ended with armistice, not peace treaty.

Since the first-ever inter-Korean summit was held in 2000, the ROK and the DPRK have held 21 rounds of face-to-face family reunions, including the latest one in August last year. The video reunions were held seven times from 2005 to 2007.

The deputy spokesperson told reporters that the ROK is making efforts to hold Red Cross talks with the DPRK for another round of face-to-face reunion of the divided families who were severely of old age.