The widow of former President Kim Dae-jung is seeking to visit North Korea as early as next month and possibly meet with leader Kim Jong-un, Seoul officials said Friday.

Lee Hee-ho, wife of the deceased president who took the reign from 1998 to 2003, has requested approval for her trip from the Unification Ministry, spokesperson Lim Byeong-cheol said.

In line with Pyongyang’s proposal, five officials from each side have agreed to meet on June 30 in Gaeseong to discuss details of her visit, according to Kim Sung-jae, who served as the Nobel Peace Prize winner’s last culture minister and currently works at the Kim Dae-jung Peace Center. The former minister will head the South’s delegation, while its counterparts are likely to be led by Maeng Kyong-il, chief of the North’s Asia-Pacific Peace Committee. 

 

“We received the request today from the center and are planning to decide on Lee’s journey after looking into its needs and whether it meets requirements,” Lim said at a news briefing.

The 93-year-old former first lady had initially sought to cross the border late last year but later postponed it due to her deteriorating health condition.

Kim Jong-un invited Lee to visit Pyongyang “in good seasons” this year in a letter to her in December, chiefly designed to express gratitude for the flowers sent by her to mark the third anniversary of the death of his father and longtime strongman Kim Jong-il.

Last April, Lee’s side offered to meet with the North Korean officials to arrange a trip the following month but they asked to delay it.

The exact time frame is to be hammered out but Lee’s side is setting sights on a date before Aug. 15, the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the peninsula, Kim Sung-jae said.

“We’ve already held consultations on the land route, lodgings and a meeting with Kim Jong-un last time when North Korea invited her, so we will focus on the timing (in Gaeseong),” he was quoted as saying in a media interview.

The project is a rare sign of cordiality between the divided states in the face of escalating tension due to the launch of a U.N. human rights office in Seoul, upcoming South Korea-U.S. military drills and other contentions.

If the planned meeting with the young ruler does materialize, Lee will be the first South Korean to see him face to face.

By Shin Hyon-hee (heeshin@heraldcorp.com)