Anchor: The government is seeking to hold a variety of joint events with North Korea around August 15th this year when the two Koreas mark the 70th anniversary of liberation from Japanese colonial rule. Seoul's Unification Ministry on Monday briefed the president about its plan to launch an inter-Korean railway via which South Korean officials will visit Pyongyang and attend events with their North Korean counterparts.
Our Bae Joo-yon has more.
 
Report: The ministries of unification, foreign affairs and defense briefed President Park Geun-hye on their specific plans to prepare for unification.
 
Explaining to the president its plans for the rest of the year, the Unification Ministry said it will propose the two Koreas form a joint committee to celebrate the 70th anniversary of Korea’s liberation from Japanese colonialism. 
 
The ministry also revealed details of its plan to establish an inter-Korean railway, aiming to send South Korean officials on a trial-run to Pyongyang to attend joint events sometime in August.
 
The ministry is currently mulling two inter-Korean routes from Seoul to Sinuiju and Rajin in the North using the South Korean Gyeongui Line that reaches the border region.
 
The ministry said it also plans to establish "South-North culture centers" in the capital cities of the two Koreas and help people from both sides find common ground before unification.
 
Identifying the envisioned centers as future hubs for inter-Korean cultural exchanges, the ministry said it will put on display results of cross-border cultural and art exchanges, such as efforts to publish a jointly developed Korean-language dictionary and the Manwoldae Palace excavation project.  
 
While laying out its friendly proposals, the ministry urged the North to come to the dialogue table to discuss the projects.
Bae Joo-yon, KBS World Radio News.