By Seo Dong-shin
Staff Reporter


South Koreans crossing the inter-Korean border to the North Korean border town of Kaesong Monday began using the newly built customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) office, according to the Unification Ministry.

The new office in Paju, Kyonggi Province is beside a road linking Seoul and Sinuiju in the northwestern part of North Korea.

Another new Southern CIQ office on an East Coast road leading to the Mt. Kumgang area will begin operating this Thursday, according to the ministry.

The two offices originally opened in 2002 and 2003 using temporary buildings after an inter-Korean agreement on road and railway linkages was struck at the first ministerial-level talks in 2000.

Apart from expanded convenience stores, the new CIQ offices are equipped with currency exchange counters provided by Woori Bank.

The currency exchange services are for South Koreans visiting the North, and for businessmen involved in the inter-Korean industrial complex in Kaesong, all of whom are advised to use U.S. dollars.

Ministry officials have also said construction of CIQ offices for the inter-Korean railways are expected to be finished by April.

The South has been pushing the North to implement security-related measures necessary to open the railways.

Former President Kim Dae-jung, who has been invited by North Korean leader Kim Jong-il to visit Pyongyang, recently expressed his wish to travel to the North by train.

saltwall@koreatimes.co.kr