North Korea has accepted 100 temporary wooden coffins from the United States and is set to transfer the remains on Friday of 55 U.S. soldiers who died on North Korean soil fighting in the Korean War, according to Reuters, which cited South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.
The remains will be picked up by a U.S. military plane and will undergo initial analysis on site, which will include opening and photographing the contents of each coffin and documenting any military brass included with the remains. The coffins will then be transferred to a military lab in Hawaii for additional DNA analysis.
The impending return of the remains is part of an agreement that President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reached during a summit in Singapore in June. The return of the soldiers’ remains and the demolition of missile test sites were concessions made by North Korea as it moves toward denuclearization.