President Roh Moo-hyun has pledged to restore the ecosystem of Korea’s mountainous backbone, the Baekdu Daegan, and to create a nature preserve in the Demilitarized Zone as a symbol of inter-Korean peace.

In a congratulatory message on the opening of a national biological museum in Incheon Wednesday, President Roh said the two Koreas will work together to build an ecological community on the Korean Peninsula for the sake of future generations.

The new biological museum, the largest in Asia, features 46-hundred samples of 985 animals and plants native to Korea. It also conducts research and provides educational programming.