Early next year, South Korea and China will explore the possibility of working together to develop the Chinese sections of the Tumen River. 

The Presidential Committee on Northern Economic Cooperation said on Friday that it had held a meeting with a Chinese delegation led by Zhu Tianshu, deputy governor of Jilin Province. 

During the meeting, they agreed to hold a dialogue in January or February on the potential project to develop the Tumen River area in China's northeastern Jilin Province. 

The Chinese provincial government proposed running a joint bilateral cooperation platform with the South Korean government to assist South Korean firms interested in investing in the Chinese province and in exporting goods and services to the region. 

An official of the committee said details of the potential project are still under discussion, but the joint operation would focus on facilitating South Korean business activities in the region. The official added related issues will be key agenda items of the upcoming northeast economic cooperation dialogue early next year.