SEOUL, Nov. 5 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has forged an agreement with Syria to increase cooperation on trading and the exchange of technologies, the North's state media said Monday.

   The Joint Economic Committee between the North and Syria held its eighth meeting since Oct. 30 till Monday in Pyongyang, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) monitored in Seoul said.

   In the meeting, both countries assessed the state of implementation of the protocol forged in the previous meeting while signing another protocol on economic trading and cooperation over technologies and science, the KCNA said without elaborating further.

   The North's Foreign Trade Minister Ri Ryong-nam headed the North side while Syria's Minister of Culture Loubana Mouchaweh led its delegation to Pyongyang, the state media said.

   pbr@yna.co.kr
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