The Unification Ministry says South and North Korea will hold working-level talks on aviation cooperation at their liaison office in Gaeseong on Friday.

The North is said to have proposed holding the meeting. 

An official at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Wednesday that no particular agenda has been set for the upcoming meeting but the two sides are likely to discuss aviation cooperation and how to go about pursuing inter-Korean cooperation within the framework of international sanctions against the North.  

Friday’s talks are highly likely to focus on the topic of establishing a direct air route between the two Koreas. 

The two Koreas had sought to establish a direct flight between Seoul and the North’s Mount Baekdu in line with agreements reached during the 2007 inter-Korean summit, but those efforts were scrapped following a power change in South Korea. 

Friday’s discussions could also touch on the North’s pursuit to set up an international air route in which its airplanes would fly to third countries by passing through South Korea's airspace.

Earlier in the first half of this year, Pyongyang submitted a request on the matter with the International Civil Aviation Organization.