Envoy meets N.K.'s No. 2 on nukes.

(From The Korea Herald)

By Shin Yong-bae Staff reporter South Korean presidential envoy Lim Dong-won met North Korea's second-in-command, Kim Yong-nam, in Pyongyang yesterday to discuss ways to resolve the North's nuclear issues, Seoul officials said.

During the meeting held at the Mansudae Assembly Hall, the envoy conveyed to Kim, head of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, international concern about the threat posed by the North's nuclear arms programs, the officials said.

Lim, a top security adviser to President Kim Dae-jung, arrived in Pyongyang Monday for a three-day visit aimed at persuading the North to relinquish its nuclear programs in favor of a more fruitful relationship with the United States.

Media reports abounded in the South Korean press that the envoy would meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-il later in the day to deliver President Kim's personal letter hoping for a peaceful settlement of the nuclear issue.

A senior South Korean government official said the envoy's scheduled return home today may be delayed by one more day in accordance with "the situation in North Korea." On Monday night, Lim and his delegation attended a dinner hosted by the North Korean side at the Daedonggang banquet hall, central Pyongyang, in which the North Korean Workers' Party Secretary Kim Yong-sun and Kim ...