The stalled railway talks among the two Koreas and Russia are expected to gain fresh momentum as Korail, the South’s state-run railway operator, is considering participating in the Russian government’s project to connect North Korea’s Rajin and Russia’s Khasan via train.

Russian Railways has carried out the project with an aim to reconstruct an existing section of the railway, the Port of Rajin cargo terminal, with access to the Trans-Siberian Railway.

According to Korail, its president Chung Chang-young discussed the issue with Russian counterpart Vladimir Yakunin in Paris on Tuesday when he attended the general assembly meeting of the International Union of Railways.

During the meeting, Korail officials said, the Russian railway chief, who is also a confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin, proposed Chung join the Rajin-Khasan project that also aims to make full use of the container port of Rajin. It is the first time that Russia has offered the proposal to a South Korean company.

“This project will pave the way for the prosperity of the logistics network in Northeast Asia and the reconciliation and cooperation of the two Koreas,” the Russian railway chief was quoted as saying by Korail.

“We (Russia) hope to play a leading role in mediating the railway cooperation between South and North Korea.”

Chung is said to have responded positively, saying, “After consultations with the Korean government and company officials, I will consider our participation for partnership with the two Koreas and Russia.”

The discussions on connecting the Trans-Siberian Railway and the Trans-Korean Railway started back in the 1980s as part of their logistics cooperation in Southeast Asia.

The shortest path between Europe and Southeast Asia is through Russia for now.

The full-fledged talks started in 2001 when then North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and Putin agreed on the joint project.

Russia and North Korea have continued working on the refurbishment of the 52-kilometer stretch linking the North Korean port of Rajin to the Russian border town of Khasan.

But South Korea’s participation was stalled due to the growing tension between two Koreas.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)