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Two SKorean delegations to visit North to honour Kim’s memory

Seoul does not intend to send to Pyongyang an official delegation of the funeral
Photo ITAR-TASS
Photo ITAR-TASS

SEOUL, December 25 (Itar-Tass) — The South Korean government permitted two delegations of its country to visit North Korea to express condolences in connection with the death of Kim Jong-Il, said on Sunday a representative of the South Korean Ministry of Unification.

One of the delegations includes the widow of former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung. Twelve members of her family and a motorcade will cross on Monday the western sector of the land inter-Korean border and will head for Pyongyang.

Chairwoman of the industrial group Hyundai Group, Hyun Jeong-eun, accompanied by four representatives of the leadership of this major company, responsible for North Korea business, will follow the same way to the North Korean capital.

However, according to the Yonhap news agency, neither of the two delegations will participate in the funeral ceremony of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, planned for Wednesday.

These two delegations were permitted to visit Pyongyang with condolences, since North Korea had sent earlier its representatives for the funeral of ex-President Kim Dae-jung, who had organized in 2000 the first inter-Korean summit.

In this connection, Seoul does not preclude a chance that the heads of the two delegations may meet junior son of the dead leader Kim Jong-Un who succeeded his father in power.

Seoul does not intend to send to Pyongyang an official delegation of the funeral, although the authorities in the North guaranteed security of southerners’ delegations.

“North Korea promised to ensure security and a possibility for maintaining communications to South Korean delegations which will want to express condolences,” said press secretary of the South Korean Ministry of Unification Choi Bo-sun.

Since following the end of the 1950-1953 Korean War, the two Koreas are technically in the state of military confrontation up to this time, any trip to North Korea must be approved by the South Korean authorities.