State Dept. officials visit N. Korea

The Seoul government reported that an advance party for the upcoming visit of U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to North Korea crossed into the North through the truce village of Panmunjom on Tuesday afternoon.

About 40 U.S. government officials led by Thomas Hubbard, deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs went into North Korea at about 3 p.m.

The party is expected to consult and work with North Koreans officials from the Foreign Ministry, the Post and Communications Ministry and the General Protective Service on various issues regarding agenda, security and telecommunications to prepare for the arrival of Albright in Pyongyang.

She is going there to negotiate with North Korea about the visit by President Bill Clinton to Pyongyang proposed in the North Korea-U.S. joint communiqué, which came Oct. 12 as a result of an earlier visit of Jo Myong-Rok, first vice chairman of the National Defense Commission, to Washington, D.C.