[Photo] South Korean advance team begins visit to North Korea

A South Korean advance team has entered North Korea for the first time since the Kaesong Industrial Complex was closed in Feb. 2016. A 12-person advance team led by Lee Joo-tae, director-general of inter-Korean exchange and cooperation at the Unification Ministry, entered North Korea through the Donghae Highway Transit Office on Jan. 23 for a three-day, two-night visit. The team will be visiting the site of the Mt. Kumgang Joint Cultural Festival and the Masikryong Ski Resort. This is only the second time that the Donghae route linking South and North Korea has been used following the closure of the Mt. Kumgang tourist resort, with the other occasion being the 2015 family reunions. (by Baek So-ah, staff photographer)

Lee Joo-tae, director-general of inter-Korean exchange and cooperation at the Unification Ministry, answers reporters’ questions prior to entering North Korea at the Donghae Highway Transit Office in Gosong, Gangwon Province on Jan. 23. (by Baek So-ah, staff photographer)

A bus carrying the South Korean advance team heading for Mt. Kumgang passes through the de-militarized zone in Gosong, Gangwon Province along the Donghae highway on Jan. 23. (Photo Pool)