Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung says the inter-Korean railway will help create a comprehensive Korean Peninsula logistics network to help balance national development and build a Korean economic community.

At a ceremony Thursday to mark the launch of railway test runs at Munsan Station on the western Gyeongui Line, the minister called the trials a prelude to a new era of peace on the peninsula. He said that they would promote the relaxing of military tensions, trust building and true reconciliation between the South and North Korean peoples.

North Korea's Chief Cabinet Councilor Kwon Ho-ung delivered congratulatory remarks at the ceremony, during which he vowed utmost efforts so that what he called the "unification train" would contribute to Korean peace and unity.

During a similar event at the North's Mount Geumgang Station on the eastern Donghae Line, South Korean Construction and Transportation Minister Lee Yong-sup proposed that a railway joint management committee be set up soon to facilitate the launch of regular train service.