A South Korean train will travel to North Korea Friday morning for an inter-Korean joint rail inspection.

The train will leave Seoul Station, receive a send-off ceremony at Dorasan Station and then head to the North. 

Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon and Transport Minister Kim Hyun-mee will deliver congratulatory messages during the send-off ceremony at Dorasan Station.

The train will inspect a total of 12-hundred kilometers of rail track in North Korea over 18 days through December 17th --- 400 kilometers on the western Gyeongui Line from Gaeseong to Sinuiju and 800 kilometers on the eastern Donghae Line from Mount Geumgang to the Tumen River.

A Unification Ministry official expected discussions on breaking ground on the rail connection project to begin within the year.