Moon holds meeting with North s state head, Kim s sister

Seoul Feb 10 (IANS) South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Saturday held a meeting with top North Korean officials including the country s ceremonial head and leader Kim Jong-un s sister a media report said.

The "rare and historic" meeting began shortly after 11 a.m. at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae. It was set to be followed by a lunch hosted by Moon Yonhap news agency reported.

The North Korean officials were received by Moon s chief of staff.

The North s official arrived here on Friday as part of a 22-member delegation led by ceremonial state head Kim Yong-nam.

Moon briefly met Kim at the reception he hosted for visiting heads of state and other global leaders before the opening of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics on Friday.

He also met Kim Jong-un s sister Kim Yo-jong at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in PyeongChang later on the same day.

"You must have had a hard time (on Friday) due to the cold weather " Moon made small talks with Yo as he received her on Saturday. "It was okay because you were kind enough to care " she replied according to reports.

Saturday s meeting also involved two other high-level delegates -- Choe Hwi the chairman of the National Sports Guidance Committee and Ri Son-gwon the head of the North s state agency in charge of inter-Korean affairs.

The North Korean leader s sister s trip was particularly surprising as she became the only member of the ruling family to have visited the South since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War.

The two Koreas technically remain at war as the Korean War ended with an armistice not a peace treaty.

--IANS
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