[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] Lee In-young, Minister of Unification, stated on the 8th regarding the suspension of the Kaesong Manwoldae inter-Korean joint excavation project, “It should be carried out regardless of the political situation.”
In a video congratulatory message at the ‘Kaesong Manwoldae Digital Restoration Academic Conference’ held at the Seoul Museum of History on the same day, Minister Lee said, “I hope the joint excavation, which has been suspended for four years due to the overlapping COVID-19 situation, will resume soon.”
He emphasized, “The Manwoldae inter-Korean joint excavation project, which began in 2007, has experienced suspensions and resumptions depending on the ups and downs of inter-Korean relations, but it has never been suspended for more than three years. This is because there was a consensus that efforts to research and preserve our nation’s history should be steadily pursued by both Koreas regardless of any political situation.”
Minister Lee described the project as “Manwoldae itself has become a precious small space of unification where many experts from both Koreas in architecture, history, archaeology, and other fields experienced commonality beyond their differences,” citing it as a representative inter-Korean exchange and cooperation project.
The Manwoldae inter-Korean joint excavation project was conducted eight times over 12 years from 2007 to 2018, but has made no progress since then due to the deterioration of inter-Korean relations and COVID-19.
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