North Korea issues invite to EU human rights envoy

NORTH Korea has invited the European Union’s special representative for human rights to visit the country.

A visit by Stavros Lambrinidis would be a significant step toward resuming a human rights dialogue between the EU and North Korea, which broke off previous talks in 2003.

A North Korean official revealed the news to journalists.

The EU has confirmed that Mr Lambrinidis recently met a Pyongyang representative.

For North Korea to offer any dialogue on human rights, a topic which its government until recently would not discuss, is seen as significant by the international community. North Korea has been on the defensive since a UN commission detailed what it said were vast human rights abuses and warned that leader Kim Jong-un could be held accountable.

Stavros Lambrinidis could be on his way to Pyongyang