Kim Jong- un’s sister extends invite to South
North- South talks may cause Moon, Trump friction
◗ Kim Yo- jong is the first member of Pyongyang’s ruling dynasty to set foot in the South since the end of the 1950- 53 Korean war
Gangneung ( South Korea), Feb. 10: North Korea’s dictator, Kim Jong- un, has invited the South Korean President, Moon Jae- in, to visit Pyongyang at the “earliest date possible” for what would be the first summit between the two nations in more than a decade.
Kim Yo- jong, the sister of the North Korean leader, made the overture during a lunch at Seoul’s presidential palace.
She is the first member of Pyongyang’s ruling dynasty to set foot in the South since the end of the 1950- 53 Korean war. Kim Yong- nam, North Korea’s ceremonial head of state, also attended the meeting.
An inter- Korean summit would be the third of its kind, after Kim’s father and predecessor Kim Jong Il met the South’s Kim Dae- jung and Roh Moo- hyun in 2000 and 2007 respectively, both of them in Pyongyang.
Moon did not immediately accept the invitation, but said, “An early resumption of dialogue between the US and the North is needed also for the development of the South- North Korean relationship.” The prospect of North- South talks could sow division between the dovish leader, who has long argued for engagement with the nucleararmed North to bring it to the negotiating table, and US President Donald Trump, who last year traded personal insults and threats of war with Kim.
Washington insists that Pyongyang — which is under UN Security Council sanctions — must take concrete steps towards denuclearisation before any negotiations can happen.