A South Korean opposition lawmaker plans to visit North Korea next week to deliver a wreath commemorating the communist nation’s late leader, Kim Jong-il, officials here said Friday.
Rep. Park Jie-won of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy submitted an application for a one-day trip to the Kaesong Industrial Complex, slated for Tuesday, to convey the wreath on the occasion of the third anniversary of Kim’s death, they said.
“We have received the application from the Park side. We are reviewing it,” a unification ministry official said. “Park is almost certain to get approval for his trip as there is no reason for the government to oppose it.”
If so, Park will visit the North in his capacity as vice chief of the Kim Dae-jung Peace Center, added the official.
Park, who was a close aide to the late South Korean president, is known for his ties with North Korean officials.
In August, he traveled to the Kaesong zone to receive a similar wreath from North Korea to mark the fifth death anniversary of the former president.
Kim Dae-jung and Kim Jong-il held a historic summit in Pyongyang in 2000. (Yonhap)
