Families torn apart for more than 60 years -- separated by the Korean War -- began to reunite at a mountain resort in North Korea Thursday . Without any regular forms of communications between the two Koreas , the family members have gone decades without phone calls , letters or emails -- unable to know whether their loved ones are alive or dead . The majority of the participants in South Korea are now in their 80s and 90s . The meetings are likely to be the last time the separated families will have contact with one another . Thursday 's reunion is the first since November 2010 . The negotiations leading to the expected reunions have also been painstaking , reflecting the tensions between North and South Korean governments . Past reunions have been emotional affairs with sobbing relatives clinging to each other and showing each other family photos . This time , the reunion was n't conducted as freely as North Korean workers stood beside the tables and listened to every conversation . One North Korean resident thanked the Marshall , which is the country 's leader , Kim Jong Un for his `` blessing '' and making the visit possible . On Thursday , the first of a six-day event , an initial 200 North and South Koreans met . Among them was Jang Chun , whose brother was 8 years old when he last saw him . Jang , a North Korean conscript during the Korean War , was taken prisoner by UN forces in South Korea . He has since lived in the South and has been unable to see his family . But four years ago , he received a letter and several photos of his family in North Korea through the Red Cross . The black-and-white photos showed his brother and a picture of his brother 's wedding -- major life milestones Jang had been unable to attend . `` It was shocking , '' he said . `` I did n't even know they were alive although I had hoped they were . After reading the letter , I started crying , I was filled with both joy and sorrow . '' Jang clutched the only memorabilia he has of his long-lost family . `` Whenever I miss my family , I read this letter , '' Jang said . Jang , silver-haired and aging , thought he finally got his chance when he learned he 'd be part of a reunion group last September . The reunion waitlist in Seoul has thousands of names and the lucky ones are selected through a computer-generated lottery . But Pyongyang canceled the September event with only a few days notice , accusing Seoul of souring ties between the two countries . `` It was like being hit on the back of the head , '' Jang said about the shock of coming so close , only to have his hopes dashed . `` I had to take medication and sedatives . '' It may have felt like deja-vu for Jang earlier this month . After the Korean governments reached an agreement to hold reunions , less than a day later , North Korea said it may back out if South Korea holds its annual military drills with the United States . South Korea has refused to cancel the annual drills . Pyongyang 's attempts to link the reunions to politics were rejected by both Seoul and Washington who see it as a purely humanitarian issue . Jang finally got his wish , trembling , while he held the hands of his younger brother , Jang Hwa Chun and younger sister Jang Keum Soon , who both live in North Korea . Jang had brought his son , Jang Ki-woong , who met his North Korean uncle and aunt for the first time . They learned coincidentally that both Jang 's son and his younger brother had become locomotive engineers . Jang 's younger sister burst into tears during the conversation . `` Every time a train passes by , I thought ( about you ) , '' Jang Keum Soon told her South Korean brother , sobbing . `` I missed you , older brother . '' Jang 's son vowed to his North Korean aunt and uncle : `` I will drive a train and come here . I am a locomotive engineer so I will drive the train and promise to come back . Until then , please stay healthy and live a long life . '' Although delayed by snow , 82 South Korean participants accompanied by 58 other members arrived Thursday afternoon and were scheduled to have lunch before finally meeting their families . The reunion ended for the day around 5 p.m. Trust remains tenuous in the peninsula , separated by the world 's most fortified border—the Demilitarized Zone and rocked by North Korea 's nuclear test last year . The rarity of inter-Korea reunions meant that many participants in ill health insisted on going to Mount Kumgang for the event , desperate for a chance to see their relatives . Nineteen of the South Korean participants were in wheelchairs . Two South Korean participants departed for the reunion venue by ambulance , one of them was receiving an IV drip , refusing to miss the date . South Korean participants of the reunion were seen bringing gifts for their family members . The most popular gifts for families in North Korea were Choco Pies , a chocolate-covered treat , along with medicine and medical supplies like pain killers , according to YTN , a CNN affiliate in South Korea . They were greeted with a newly-made stone near their North Korean facilities that read : `` Long Live General Kim Jong Un , The Sun of Military First Korea . ''
North and South Korean families to reunite in six-day event at North Korean mountain resort . Most of the South Korean participants are in their 80s and 90s . Families have been separated since the Korean War . An armistice between the warring sides was signed in 1953 .