North and South Korea confirm family reunions will resume in August for the first time since 2015
North Korea has a lengthy track record of manipulating the issue of divided families for political purposes, refusing proposals for regular reunions and cancelling scheduled events at the last minute
North and South Korea agreed on Friday to resume reunions for families separated by the Korean war in August – the first such meetings since 2015 and the latest step in a remarkable diplomatic thaw on the peninsula.
Millions of people were separated during the 1950-53 conflict that sealed the division of the two Koreas.
Most died without the chance to see or hear from their relatives on the other side of the border, across which all civilian communication is banned.
The resumption of the reunions was among the agreements reached between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and the South’s president Moon Jae-in at their landmark summit in April.
Officials from both sides met at the North’s scenic Mount Kumgang resort on Friday and set a date for late August.
“The reunion will be held from August 20 to 26 and 100 participants will be selected from each side,” said a joint Seoul-Pyongyang statement released by the South’s unification ministry.