Ministry of Unification press briefing
on restoring communications channels between South and North Korea
July 27, 2021
The South and the North agreed to restore inter-Korean
communications channels as of 10 A.M., July 27, 2021.
Accordingly, the Ministry conducted calls with the North today
through direct communications lines at the Panmunjeom and the
South-North Joint Liaison Office. South and North Korea successfully
carried out calls through the machine room of the Panmunjeom channel
today at 10 A.M. The call through the Joint Liaison Office was made
between 11:04 A.M. to 11:07 A.M. by liaison officers. The call was
originally attempted at 10 A.M., but technical inspections were needed.
In the call, the South’s liaison officer said, “I am glad calls have
resumed. Just as the inter-Korean communications network has been
restored, I hope this will continue to bring good news to the Korean people.”
In addition, we suggested that the two sides make regular calls at 9
A.M. and 5 P.M. each day, as did in the past. The North responded to
the proposal, hence the South and the North will be continuing calls
this afternoon.
The ROK Government welcomes today’s restoration of communications
channels between the two Koreas, which was achieved through mutual
agreement. We hope that communications between the two sides never be
severed again, and look forward to discussing various pending issues
and fulfilling previous inter-Korean agreements.
