The United States and North Korea have agreed to search for the remains of 5,300 U.S. soldiers who died in the Korean War and whose bodies were never recovered, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement Sunday.
The statement was issued after "the first general officer-level talks" between the two countries since 2009.
"Today's talks were productive and cooperative and resulted in firm commitments," Pompeo said. Officials will hold further meetings Monday "to coordinate the next steps, including the transfer of remains already collected," he said.
The weekend talks were held in the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported that the U.S. delegation was led by Michael Minihan, chief of staff of the U.S.-led United Nations Command.
Broadcaster Arirang reported that the U.S. had provided 100 wooden coffins to bring the remains back to America for identification.
Between 1996 and 2005, U.S. teams exhumed the suspected remains of more than 220 soldiers in North Korea. However, searching was stopped by the U.S. in 2005 because of security concerns.
About 33,000 U.S. soldiers are estimated to have died in the Korean War, with more than 8,000 still missing.