President Moon Jae-in of South Korea expresses an intent to create a Northeast Asian railroad network which would include participation from its neighbors like North Korea, China, Japan, and Mongolia, as well as with the United States and Russia. The object of the plan is to further cement the peace and prosperity situation that the region has long been yearning for.
During an event which celebrates SoKor's independence from the Japanese colonial rule, the Korean president described his vision as something like a "railroad community," where the infrastructure transcends from merely providing the purpose of transportation, a report from Yonhap News Agency said.
Moon admits in his speech that realistically speaking, a political unification in the Korean Peninsula is still a long way from becoming a reality. However, the railroad system offers the golden opportunity for both Koreas to establish peace by allowing each of their constituents to freely traverse from South to the North and vice versa.
The South Korean head of state, who is a stark advocate in the conclusion of the NoKor and SoKor divide, said that this open channel forms what he refers to as a "joint economic community."
"This community will lead to an energy bloc and economic bloc in Northeast Asia," Moon said, and as quoted over at CNBC.
The inter-region railway project of South Korea bears a close resemblance to the forming of the European Union. According to the leader, the bloc, which in majority consists of developed nations in Western Europe, was originally formed as an organization for coal and steel trade. Eventually, it has grown to become what it is today.
In similar fashion, Moon proposed along with the railroad project his vision to create a "Northeast Asian railroad community" which would include the US and its Asian neighbors such as China, Mongolia, Japan, North Korea, and even Russia.
As further informed by the presidential spokesperson Cheong Wa Dae, construction of the NoKor-SoKor railway passage will commence before this present year ends.
Warming relations between North Korea and South Korea continues to develop as its respective leaders are now set to meet again for the third time in an unspecified September 2018 date.
According to this previous report, the upcoming Korean summit will be held in the capital of North Korea, Pyongyang.
The first two meetings between Moon and his counterpart, Kim Jung-on took place in a neutral village of Panmunjom on April and later in May.
