Welcome to Gaia! ::

SEOUL, Oct. 2 (AP) - (Kyodo)—(EDS: UPDATING WITH ROH CROSSING INTO NORTH KOREA)
South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun, his wife and 13 members of an official delegation took several small steps Tuesday across the demilitarized zone dividing North and South Korea, a short walk to symbolize the hope for reunification and permanent peace on the divided Korean Peninsula.

About an hour earlier, Roh had left his presidential office to begin the trip for a three-day visit to Pyongyang to attend an inter-Korean summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

At the first top meeting between the two Koreas since an initial summit in 2000 in Pyongyang, the two Korean leaders are expected to discuss ways of preserving peace on the Korean Peninsula.

The leaders are also expected to discuss ways to further promote national reconciliation and bilateral economic projects.

Roh and his wife Kwon Yang Suk, accompanied by a 298-member entourage that includes journalists, will stay in the North Korean capital for three days before returning home Thursday.

Riding in a presidential sedan, Roh became the first South Korean head of state to make an overland cross-border trip to the North.

When the presidential motorcade reached the across-border road in the western section of the peninsula, Roh, his wife Kwon and 13 official delegates, stepped out of their cars and walked about 50 meters to cross the border between South and North Korea.

Roh's entourage will now spend about three hours traversing on the North Korean expressway from its border city Kaesong to reach the capital Pyongyang and his meetings with Kim.

The summit between the two Korean leaders comes just days after envoys struck a provisional agreement on Sunday at the six-party talks in Beijing on the next phase of disabling North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

The provisional agreement has gone for official approvals from their capitals and negotiations will restart soon so the deal can be finalized.

The six-party talks bring together the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia.

Prior to departure, Roh said in a brief speech in Seoul his talks with North Korean leader Kim would focus on achieving peaceful relationship with the North and bilateral economic development.

"Among other things, I intend to concentrate on making substantive and concrete progress that will bring about a peace settlement together with economic development."

Roh also said he will do his best to make the inter-Korean summit expedite the success of the six-party talks on the North's nuclear weapons program.

The first inter-Korean summit between then South Korean President Kim Dae Jung and North Korean leader Kim resulted in a string of inter- Korean projects aimed at further promoting reconciliation and economic cooperation between the two Koreas.