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Kim Yo-jong, first vice director of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, gets off at Jinbu Station to attend the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang on Feb. 9. Circled in red is Kim Song-hye, an official at North Korea’s United Front Department. (photo pool)
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Delegation to attend international forum on Asia-Pacific peace and prosperity
South Korea’s Ministry of Unification has approved a visit to the South by a North Korean delegation consisting of seven high-ranking officials, including Ri Jong-hyok, vice chairman of the Korean Asia-Pacific Peace Committee, and Kim Song-hye, head of the United Front Department’s tactical office. “Seven North Korean officials, including North Korean Asia-Pacific Peace Committee Vice Chairman Ri Jong-hyok, are planning to visit South Korea on the afternoon of Nov. 14 to attend an international forum on peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region that will be held in Goyang by Gyeonggi Province and the Asia-Pacific Exchange Association. We approved their visit to South Korea today,” the Unification Ministry announced on Nov. 12. The North Korean delegation will remain in South Korea from Nov. 14 to 17. Along with Ri Jong-hyok and Kim Song-hye, the other officials whose visit has been approved by the Unification Ministry are Song Myong-chol, an official with the Korean Asia-Pacific Peace Committee; Kim Chun-sun, an analyst with the committee; and Cho Jong-chol, an advisor for the committee, as well as two support staff, one of whom is named Ri Yong-nam. One notable name on this list is Kim Song-hye, who accompanied Kim Yo-jong, first vice director of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea, on her visit to South Korea for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics this past February. The Unification Ministry noted that Ri Yong-nam, on the support staff, is not the same person as North Korea’s deputy prime minister, who has the same name. “Since this forum is being organized by local governments and NGOs, we’re not planning to have any intergovernmental contact. The government’s role is to provide support so that the forum can go smoothly,” said Unification Ministry spokesperson Baik Tae-hyun during the regular press briefing on Monday. When asked during the briefing about the possibility of the high-ranking North Korean delegation making contact with South Korean officials to discuss a return visit to South Korea by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Baik flatly said that “the purpose of their visit to South Korea is to attend the international forum on peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.” The North Korean delegation’s visit to South Korea was decided following deliberations between North Korea and Gyeonggi Province during an inter-Korean event celebrating the 11th anniversary of the Oct. 4 Summit Declaration that was held in Pyongyang on Oct. 4-6. During his visit to Pyongyang, Gyeonggi Province Vice Governor for Peace Lee Hwa-young reached an agreement on six projects, including the North Korean delegation attending this international forum. When the North Korean officials visit South Korea, they will reportedly be an event at which they will have a chance to meet Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, one of the leading politicians in the ruling party. By Noh Ji-won, staff reporter Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]
