U.S. House of Representative Members to Visit North Korea

Six members of the U.S. House of Representatives will visit North Korea for three days starting from May 30. The invitation was made by North Korea.

This visit will be made without any definite decision on whether to hold follow-up discussions after the trilateral meeting held in Beijing, China one month ago to solve the nuclear issue.

Republican House member Kurt Weldon (Pennsylvania) had a press conference in Washington on May 28 before visiting North Korea and said that the delegation’s purpose for visiting North Korea is not to negotiate with North Korea instead of the U.S. administration.

Instead, they plan to emphasize potential advantages brought to the rogue state in case the nation makes efforts to resolve its nuclear threats as well as improve bilateral ties with the U.S.

U.S. State Department Representative Richard Boucher said: “They will travel to the country as members of the House of Representatives. They will not carry any message from the U.S. administration.”

Mr. Weldon said: “We will have discussions with North Korea regarding energy and other humanitarian support that could be provided to the country following a resolution of the nuclear issue. We want to solve serious humanitarian issues in the country. But, there is a line to be overcome; that of eliminating their nuclear program.”

Two Republican members – Joe Wilson (South Carolina) and Jeff Miller (Florida), and three Democratic members – Elliot Angel (New York), Silvestre Leis and Solomon Otis (Texas) will accompany Mr. Weldon on the trip. They will land at a U.S. base in Japan, then take a military air plane bound for Pyongyang. They will arrive on May 30 for a three day stay, and then come down to Seoul on June 1.

They are scheduled to meet with high-level officials including the highest member of the party Kim Young-nam, but are reported not to have plans to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.

maypole@donga.com