Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun said Thursday that a North Korean delegation to the upcoming inter-Korean Cabinet-level talks in Seoul will arrive via a direct air route over the West Sea Monday morning.

The minister said the North Korean delegation will depart Sunan Airport in Pyongyang at 9 a.m. and fly via the directirect air route to arrive at Incheon International Airport at 10 a.m..

The delegation was originally expected to arrive in the South via Beijing.

A government official said, meanwhile, four South Korean delegates, except for chief negotiator Jeong, are expected to welcome the North Korean delegation at the airport pertinent to previous practices.

He said the delegation is scheduled to return to Pyongyang Wednesday aboard the same plane that brings a 110-member North Korean civic delegation to the South for joint celebrations on Aug. 15th Liberation Day.

The official said it is unusual for a North Korean delegation to inter-Korean negotiations to use a direct air route and it may herald the success of the talks.