SOUTH KOREA/NORTH KOREA: NORTH AND SOUTH KOREA CELEBRATE LIBERATION DAY WITH PARADES AND SOCCER MATCH.

Record ID: 854122

  • Title: SOUTH KOREA/NORTH KOREA: NORTH AND SOUTH KOREA CELEBRATE LIBERATION DAY WITH PARADES AND SOCCER MATCH.
  • Date: 14th August 2005
  • Summary: (W3) SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA (AUGUST 14, 2005) (REUTERS) LV/GV: INDEPENDENCE CEREMONY MARCH (3 SHOTS) GV: WOMEN HOLDING A FLAG SYMBOLISING REUNIFICATION (WHITE FLAG WITH PENINSULA IN BLUE) MV/ZOOM OUT/GV: TOP NORTH KOREAN DELEGATION LEADER KIM KI-NAM (LEFT) AND SOUTH KOREAN UNIFICATION MINISTER CHUNG DONG-YOUNG (RIGHT) GV: MARCH HEADING TOWARDS STADIUM GV
  • Embargoed: 29th August 2005 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA / PYONGYANG, NORTH KOREA
  • City:
  • Country: Korea, Democratic People's Republic of
  • Topics: General,Politics,Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVAF18I2XWT9WY97P7HOOEI76OWW
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: North and South Korea jointly celebrate Liberation
    Day.



    North and South Koreans celebrated the 60th
    anniversary of independence from Japanese colonial rule on
    Sunday (August 14) despite an unresolved crisis over
    Pyongyang's nuclear plans.

    The four-day event highlights renewed exchanges between
    the two Koreas and comes during a recess in inconclusive
    six-party talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear
    ambitions.

    The North delegation, led by senior communist official
    Kim Ki-nam, marched towards the venue of the official
    Liberation Day ceremony with the South Korean delegation,
    headed by South Korean Unification Minister Chung
    Dong-young. South Koreans cheered on the sidelines while
    waving reunification flags as the North Koreans passed by.

    Earlier, Kim made an unprecedented visit to the South's
    national cemetery to pay their respects at a memorial for
    soldiers killed in the Korean War.

    As the march entered the stadium, the 65,000 capacity
    crowd of North and South Korean officials and citizens
    cheered and waved. A huge reunification flag ascended
    toward the top of the stadium and banners unfurled a message that read
    "we are now unified!"
    The ceremony continued with a friendly soccer match
    between the two Koreas, which began after North and South
    Korean officials greeted the soccer players.

    South Korea beat the North 3-0.

    In Pyongyang, a national meeting was held on Sunday in
    an indoor stadium to celebrate the anniversary. North
    Korea's number two official Kim Yong-nam said Pyongyang
    maintains the stand for a peaceful settlement of the
    nuclear issue and will work hard for the denuclearisation
    of the peninsula.

    Kim also said unification was the highest goal of the
    Korean people.

    "We will realise the three forms of cooperation -
    national independence, peace against war and reunification
    and patriotism, under the banner of the June 15 North-South
    joint declaration (to achieve the independent reunification
    of the country)," Kim said.

    Senior party officials as well as state and military
    officials attended the meeting.

    North and South Korea's relations have improved in
    recent years and markedly in the past few months but they
    are
    technically still at war and the peninsula is divided by a
    Demilitarised Zone.


    ENDS
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