Historic Trip: South Korean Envoys to Meet North’s Kim
Local Editor
In a historic move, the leader of North Korea hosted a dinner with the delegation from Seoul which, according to state media, proceeded in a "compatriotic and sincere atmosphere" and laid the ground for versatile dialogue and cooperation.
"Hearing the intention of President Moon Jae In for a summit from the special envoy of the south side, [Kim Jong-un] exchanged views and made a satisfactory agreement," North Korea's official KCNA news agency reported on Tuesday. However, no further details of the "agreement" were provided.
Kim Jong-un also reportedly reaffirmed his "firm will to vigorously advance the north-south relations and write a new history of national reunification," and instructed relevant authorities to "rapidly take practical steps" to accelerate the talks.
The most senior South Koreans to travel North for more than a decade arrived in Pyongyang Monday to meet Kim Jong Un, the latest step in an Olympics-driven rapprochement on the divided peninsula.
The delegation, who traveled as envoys of the South's President Moon Jae-in, are pushing for talks between the nuclear-armed regime and the United States, after Kim sent his sister to the Pyeongchang Winter Games.
"It was agreed... that they would attend a meeting and dinner with Kim Jong Un," said Moon's spokesman.
Kim Yo Jong's trip was the first visit to the South by a member of the North's ruling dynasty since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War, and her appearance at the Games' opening ceremony -- where athletes from the two Koreas marched together -- made global headlines.
Moon has sought to use the Pyeongchang Games to open dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang in hopes of easing a nuclear standoff that has heightened fears over global security.
In Seoul, Kim Yo Jong invited him to a summit in Pyongyang on her brother's behalf. But Moon did not immediately accept, saying the right conditions were necessary first.
Before leaving for Pyongyang, the South's national security adviser Chung Eui-yong said: "We plan to hold in-depth discussions for ways to continue not only inter-Korean talks but dialogue between North Korea and the international community including the United States."
They traded threats of war and sent tensions soaring before a thaw in the run-up to the Winter Olympics.
"We will deliver President Moon's firm resolution to denuclearise the Korean peninsula and to create sincere and lasting peace," delegation leader Chung told reporters.
Chung is one of five senior officials who flew to Pyongyang on Monday.
It was the first ministerial-level South Korean visit to the North since December 2007, when Seoul's then-intelligence chief traveled to Pyongyang.
Conservative Lee Myung-bak was elected the South's president the following day and took a markedly harder line on relations with the North.
Monday's delegation included spy chief Suh Hoon, who is a veteran in dealings with the North. He is known to have been deeply involved in negotiations to arrange two previous inter-Korean summits in 2000 and 2007.
The North's official Korean Central News Agency also announced their impending visit in a one-paragraph dispatch.
The 10-member group -- five top delegates and five supporting officials -- will return to Seoul on Tuesday.
Other members include Suh's deputy at the National Intelligence Service as well as Chun Hae-sung, the vice minister in Seoul's unification ministry which handles cross-border affairs.
The delegation will fly to the US on Wednesday to explain the result of the two-day trip to officials in Washington, according to the South's presidential office.
Moon said last week that Washington needs to "lower the threshold for talks" with Pyongyang.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
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