The Ministry of Unification said Wednesday that South Korea will begin large-scale economic cooperation projects with North Korea once bilateral relations are thawed.

In a New Year's report to President Lee Myung-bak, the ministry said that it will seek a turnaround in strained inter-Korean relations in 2009.

In particular, the ministry reported that it will seek to discuss with the North ways to cooperate in forestry, agriculture, fisheries, mine development, and road and railroad maintenance projects and will attempt to get Pyongyang to support Seoul's efforts to link natural gas pipes to Russia via the North.

The ministry also said it will pursue joint development of inter-Korean border areas, including the mouth of the Han River, and implement measures to reinvigorate the Gaeseong Industrial Complex.

In addition, the ministry said that once the two Koreas return to the negotiating table, it will try to resolve the shooting death of a South Korean tourist at a North Korean resort area on Mount Geumgang and normalize overland passage through the military demarcation line.