North Korea's premier Kim Yong-il and his South Korean counterpart Han Duck-soo met for the three-day summit at the Sheraton Walkerhill Hotel in west Seoul and are expected to discuss economic programs, including a railway link, creating a fishing zone, shipbuilding projects and the joint use of ports.
The North and South Korean presidents met in early October in only the second-ever inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang, signing a historic joint declaration pledging a commitment to peace talks and a range of economic ties.
The improvement in relations between the two countries was also aided by progress at six-party talks held in October involving South and North Korea, China, the U.S., Russia and Japan, when Pyongyang agreed to disable its Yongbyon reactor by the end of the year.
The countries involved pledged to deliver fuel and equipment in exchange for the shut down of North Korea's nuclear facilities.
The two Koreas have been technically at war since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War. However, any formal peace treaty would require the participation of the United States and China, which were also involved in the conflict. The U.S. has so far been reluctant to discuss a peace treaty until the North fully discontinues its nuclear program.
