By Xinhua
Pyongyang/Seoul : South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and top leader of North Korea Kim Jong Il will issue a joint declaration Thursday morning after their two rounds of talks Wednesday.
The joint declaration will sum up the outcome of their meetings, pool reports said.
Roh decided Wednesday afternoon not to extend his stay in Pyongyang by an extra day, which was proposed by Kim. He will return to Seoul Thursday as scheduled.
Kim made the proposal after their second round of talks began at around 2.30 p.m. (0530 GMT) at the Paekhwawon State Guest House. And the South Korean side soon declined the offer.
During the afternoon session of the formal summit talks, the two leaders, Roh and Kim, are expected to attempt to narrow differences on their agenda issues.
Their first round of talks was held in the morning, beginning at around 9.30 a.m. (0030 GMT), and lasted more than two hours.
During the first round of talks, they engaged in in-depth discussions on measures to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula and cross-border economic cooperation.
The summit is the second of its kind since the peninsula was divided more than half a century ago. Roh’s predecessor Kim Dae-jung travelled to the North for the first inter-Korean summit in June 2000.
Growing economic cooperation has been a highlight of the warming relations between the North and South since the first inter-Korean summit.
Joint projects have been launched in tourism, industry and other fields, including tours of Mt. Kumgang and the industrial zone in the North’s border city of Kaesong.
Earlier, a spokesman for Roh told reporters in Seoul that South Korean Finance Minister Kwon O-kyu and Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung joined Kim Jong Il and Roh at Wednesday morning’s meeting.
According to the spokesman, Roh and Kim will plant a tree at the central arboretum of Pyongyang later in the day as a memorial to the second inter-Korean summit and watch a mass dance and musical spectacle, the Arirang. The performance features synchronized manoeuvres by thousands of dancers and giant flip-card mosaic.
The two sides were also to hold working-group meetings to explore ways of strengthening bilateral cooperation in seven areas, including economy, culture, religion and politics, said the spokesman.
The South Korean president is scheduled to visit some industrial sites Thursday before wrapping up his three-day visit.
Roh, who travelled some 200 km overland to Pyongyang Tuesday and was greeted by Kim at a festive ceremony upon arrival, met the North Korean top legislator, Kim Yong-nam, Tuesday afternoon.