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            Koreas Set Date for Reopening Shuttered Industrial Park

   by VOA News

   North and South Korea have agreed to reopen a jointly-run industrial
   park just inside the North Korean border on a trial basis starting next
   Monday.
   The South's Unification Ministry says negotiators reached the deal on
   the Kaesong industrial complex following marathon negotiations that
   lasted through early Wednesday.
   The two sides tentatively agreed last month to re-open the facility,
   which was effectively closed by the North in April. But the South was
   still looking for compensation for its companies affected by the
   closure and for assurances that such a move would not happen again.
   The South's statement said the two sides agreed that South Korean
   companies would not pay taxes for this year. They also agreed to open
   the complex to foreign investors, which could make it harder to shut
   down operations in the future.
   North Korean state media confirmed the September 16 re-opening date,
   but offered no other details.
   North Korea pulled its 53,000 workers from Kaesong in April. It blamed
   rising tensions from joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises and
   expanded U.N. sanctions in response to its third nuclear test.
   Since 2004, Kaesong has been an important symbol of cooperation between
   Seoul and Pyongyang, which remain in a technical state of war since
   their 1950s conflict ended only in a truce.
   Over 120 South Korean businesses use Kaesong to manufacture a variety
   of products with cheap North Korean labor. In turn, the industrial park
   serves to provide vital foreign currency to the impoverished North.
   Wednesday's announcement is the latest sign of easing tensions on the
   Korean peninsula. Last month the two Koreas also agreed to resume
   stalled talks on reuniting families forcefully separated six decades
   ago by the Korean War.
   Last week, the North also restored a military hotline on the countries'
   tense, heavily armed border that was severed at the height of this
   year's tensions.
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   ed-industrial-park/1747291.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/koreas-set-date-for-reopening-shuttered-industrial-park/1747291.html