8/11/2019 North Korean Officials Pay Rare and Surprising Visit to the South

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/north-korean-officials-pay-rare-and-surprising-visit-to-the-south 1/5

North Korean ofcials pay rare andsurprising visit to the SouthSouth Korea's national security adviser Kim Kwan-Jin, let, shakes hands with Hwang

yong-So , director o the North Korean military's !eneral olitical "ureau, the topmilitary post in North Korea, during a luncheon meeting# $Korea ool%&%!etty (mages)

"y

&nna i*eld +ctoer at ./0 &1

KYOTO, Japan — North and South Korea

have agreed to hold another round of high-level talks after a top-level Northern

delegation, including the men thought to be second and third in command behind

Kim Jong n, paid a surprise visit to the South on Saturda!"

The unusual and unannounced trip — the first such high-level visit in more than

8/11/2019 North Korean Officials Pay Rare and Surprising Visit to the South

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/north-korean-officials-pay-rare-and-surprising-visit-to-the-south 2/5

five !ears — comes at a time of intense speculation about North Korea#s leadership,

given that Kim, the third-generation leader of the communist state, has not been

seen in public for a month"

$t also comes amid a stead! stream of disparaging comments from both sides, %ithSouth Korean &resident &ark 'eun-h!e recentl! calling for the international

communit! to help in (tearing do%n the %orld#s last remaining %all of division) and

the North calling &ark an (eternal traitor) in response"

*$t+s a big deal, it+s reall! a big deal, because it+s completel! unprecedented,* said

 ndrei ankov, a North Korea scholar %ho studied in &!ong!ang and no% teaches

in Seoul"

The ..-strong group from North Korea %as led b! /%ang &!ong So, %idel!

considered Kim#s deput!" /e#s the top political official in the Korean &eople#s rm!

and vice chairman of the National 0efense 1ommission, %hich is led b! Kim"

Other members of the delegation included 1hoe 2!ong /ae, %ho has performed

 both the roles currentl! performed b! /%ang, and is currentl! chairman of the

State &h!sical 1ulture and Sports 1ommission" That 3ob %as previousl! held

 b! Jang Song Taek , the influential uncle that Kim Jong n had e4ecuted last

0ecember, according to NK Ne%s, a 5eb site that monitors the North"

The third top official %as Kim Yang 'on, secretar! of the central committee of the

Korean 5orkers# &art! and head of the nited 6ront 0epartment, the North#s

e7uivalent of the South#s unification ministr!"

The delegation had lunch %ith South Korea#s unification minister, 2!oo Kihl-3ae,

and Kim K%an-3in, the national securit! adviser to &ark" South Korean media

sho%ed photos of 2!oo shaking hands %ith /%ang, in North Korean militar!

uniform, bedecked %ith medals, and later sitting do%n for a meeting together"

8/11/2019 North Korean Officials Pay Rare and Surprising Visit to the South

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/north-korean-officials-pay-rare-and-surprising-visit-to-the-south 3/5

The! also met South Korean &rime 8inister 1hung /ong-%on, %ho later said he

 vie%ed the visit as a good omen" *$ hope that it %ill lead to South-North

cooperation and e4changes,* his office said he told the North Koreans, according to

 Yonhap Ne%s"

The t%o sides agreed to hold another round of talks, perhaps even before the end of

this month, and in a sign of %hat counts as progress %hen it comes to diplomatic

relations %ith North Korea, the delegation from &!ong!ang even agreed to call the

talks *talks*"

*The delegates agreed to have %orking-level consultations on specific matters

ahead of the high-level meeting,* a spokesman for the South+s unification ministr!

said in a statement after the meetings" *The North e4plained that it intends to

continue inter-Korean dialogue b! naming the upcoming meeting the second round

of talks"*

/o%ever, the North Koreans did not meet &ark, the South Korean president, %ith

the spokesman sa!ing a meeting *%as not reali9ed due to limited time*"

Still, the sudden visit, %hich anal!sts said appeared to take South Korea b!

surprise, sparked talk of a tha% on the divided peninsula" The delegation arrived

Saturda! morning, ostensibl! to attend the closing ceremon! of the sian 'ames,

 %hich had been held in $ncheon, the airport cit! about an hour %est of Seoul"

“This group has %a! too much firepo%er for the closing ceremon! of the sian

'ames,) said John 0elur!, a North Korea %atcher at Yonsei niversit! in Seoul"

(The games are a subterfuge for some kind of inter-Korean movement" $ do think

the!#re coming %ith a substantive agenda for &ark")

This is the highest level North Korean delegation to visit the South since :;;<,

 %hen t%o top officials — including Kim Yang 'on, %ho visited again Saturda! —

8/11/2019 North Korean Officials Pay Rare and Surprising Visit to the South

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/north-korean-officials-pay-rare-and-surprising-visit-to-the-south 4/5

 visited to pa! the North#s respects after the death of Kim 0ae-3ung, the president

 %ho championed rapprochement bet%een the t%o Koreas"

ankov said that North Korea appeared to be enlarging its *charm offensive* as it

tries to *get a%a! from e4cessive 1hinese influence*" North Korea+s foreign ministerhas been on traveling the globe, speaking to the nited Nations 'eneral ssembl!

last month and no% visiting 2ussia" Officials have been holding talks %ith the

Japanese government over a decades-old abduction dispute"

=ven as his top aides visited South Korea, Kim Jong n remained m!steriousl!

missing from the public e!e" /e has not been seen since Sept" >, and his unusual

absence from a session of the Supreme &eople#s ssembl! in &!ong!ang last month

 %as follo%ed b! even more unusual reports in the state media that he %as in

an (indisposed condition")

This triggered rumors covering ever! possibilit! from a stroke to a coup d#etat"

South Korean ne%spaper reported that the ever-increasing leader is merel!

recovering from surger! on both ankles, although, as %ith most reports about North

Korea, this can not be verified"

The fact that such a high level delegation visited South Korea on Saturda! —

combined %ith the flurr! of other trips — added %eight to the theor! that Kim is

simpl! ill, said 0elur!"

“This kind of travel %ould be %a! too out there if an!thing serious %as going on in

North Korea, so $ don#t think it#s a sign of a coup,) he said" (?ut to %hat e4tent are

the! doing this because of all the speculation@ 5e can#t rule out that this is part of a

campaign to sho% that ever!thing is normal there")

$f the sian 'ames %ere 3ust a pretence, it %as one that the North Koreans %ere

keeping up"

8/11/2019 North Korean Officials Pay Rare and Surprising Visit to the South

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/north-korean-officials-pay-rare-and-surprising-visit-to-the-south 5/5

“ s $ %atched some people Ain the standsB shouting unification slogans and %aving

unification flags on TC, $#m proud that the sports sector is taking the initiative in

terms of the national unification,) 1hoe said Saturda!, according to reports from

Seoul"

North Korea competed at the sian 'ames, %ith its men#s soccer team pla!ing

South Korea in the final this %eek" The South %on .-;"

 5hile both Koreas espouse unification for the peninsula, divided since the end of

 5orld 5ar $$, each has different ideas about %hat a reunited countr! should looks

likeD The industriali9ed South thinks capitalism and democrac! should prevail,

 %hile the communist, impoverished North maintains its s!stem is morall! superior"

&nna i*eld is 2he ost3s ureau chie in 2okyo, ocusing on Japan

and the Koreas# She previously reported or the inancial 2imes rom 4ashington

56, Seoul, Sydney, 7ondon and rom across the 1iddle 8ast#

&osted b! Thavam