South and North Korea have been struggling to press forward with their talks over the reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War, officials here said Tuesday, following a recent landmark deal on easing military tension.

The two Koreas have been holding Red Cross talks, which kicked off Monday, at the truce village of Panmunjom to discuss details, such as the date and the venue of the upcoming event, they said.

The long-stretched discussion came as the two Koreas reached a historic agreement on Aug. 25 to resume the reunions on the occasion of Korea's fall harvest Chuseok holiday slated for late this month.

There is growing speculation that the reunions are likely to be held at Mount Kumgang, a scenic resort on the North's east coast, in October, given the time needed for preparations. The envisioned event, if held, will become the first reunion since February 2014.

Long-strained inter-Korean ties have taken a dramatic twist in recent weeks as South and North Korea reached the deal following heightened tension over the North's landmine blasts near the inter-Korean border in early August.

There are more than 66,000 South Korean family members separated by the Korean War, which ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, leaving South and North Korea technically at war.

The issue of the separated families is one of the most pressing humanitarian matters as most surviving family members are in their 70s and 80s. About half of the around 129,700 applicants for the family reunions have passed away.

Since the first historic inter-Korean summit in 2000, the two Koreas have held 19 rounds of face-to-face family reunion events.

Seven rounds of video-based reunions also have been held.

Only some 18,800 family members from both sides have enjoyed having face-to-face reunions so far.

The agenda for the talks mainly focuses on the details of the upcoming reunions, but the South is seeking to discuss other related issues such as holding the family reunions on a regular basis and the confirmation of the fate of all surviving separated families on both sides.

President Park Geun-hye said in August that South Korea will send North Korea a list of about 66,000 separated family members to be considered for possible reunions. The North has been silent about Seoul's plan.

Experts said inter-Korean ties are likely improving, but there are still dampeners, such as the possibility of a long-range missile launch by North Korea next month.

Despite the easing military tension on the Korean Peninsula, there is still a chance that North Korea could make an additional provocation ahead of Oct. 10, the 70th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party. (Yonhap)