South and North Korea will hold a working-level meeting in the North’s border city of Gaesong Thursday on boosting economic cooperation.

The discussions are likely to focus on Seoul’s proposal to provide raw materials for the North’s light industry as well as joint development and use of the North's underground natural resources.

The South’s delegation is expected to urge the swift implementation of agreements reached on projects involving inter-Korean railways and roads.

The South will also call for the prompt opening of inter-Korean military talks that will focus on drawing up military security measures for inter-Korean economic cooperation projects.

The Unification Ministry forecasts that the two sides will likely face difficulties in narrowing differences over the volume of the raw materials that would be provided to the North and the method of supply.

The North wants raw materials that can be used to produce 60 million pairs of shoes, 20-thousand tons of soap and 30-thousand tons of clothing, while Seoul is seeking to provide considerably less.