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| Will North Korean leader Kim Jong-un come to Seoul this year? Former unification minister Jeong Se-hyun says it could happen and the most likely dates are Dec. 18-20. |
By Park Si-soo
All eyes are on North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's possible visit to Seoul this year.
With everything up in the air, South Korean President Moon Jae-in is trying to make it happen, saying Kim's visit this year is still "a possibility."
He said a visit would "accelerate the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" and result in a "greater stride in relations improvement" between the North and the United States.
Against this backdrop, a former unification minister predicted on Tuesday that Kim could come to Seoul between Dec. 18 and 20.
"I was told that a government official reportedly said Kim has no fixed schedule on Dec. 18, 19 and 20," former Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun said in a radio interview. "So I think he could come on the days."
Jeong is well known for his ample knowledge of North Korea, built on his experience of serving the nation as unification minister between Jan. 2002 and June 2004.
"Dec. 17 is the anniversary of the death of Kim's father, so it's impossible for him to come," Jeong said. "And he is set to become hectic from Dec. 20. If he comes and stays on Dec. 18, 19, 20, it will happen exactly three months after Moon's visit to Pyongyang on Sept. 18-20. Given that Kim has cleared the three days of schedules, I expect that Kim would come (to Seoul) during those days."
Jeong dismissed the possibility of Kim visiting Seoul in the week of Christmas.
"Christmas has no meaning in the North," he said. "Furthermore, Seoul would be bustling around the time."
Jeong said if Kim is really supposed to visit Seoul this year, the two Koreas would have already been in talks ― in a clandestine manner ― to set up Kim's itinerary and other details.
