The Unification Ministry says that South Korea is in discussions with the U.S. and the UN on how to exempt an inter-Korean railway project from international sanctions. 

A ministry official told reporters Thursday that the government will schedule an inter-Korean railway study in tandem with developments in those talks as well as discussions with the North.

The Koreas had agreed to hold a groundbreaking ceremony by early December but that schedule was delayed pending consultations between Seoul and Washington.