채윤환
| 2025-08-28 16:12:39
(LEAD) presidential office-NK leader
(LEAD) Presidential office says was aware of N.K. leader's planned trip to China in advance
(ATTN: UPDATES throughout)
By Chae Yun-hwan
SEOUL, Aug. 28 (Yonhap) -- The presidential office said Thursday it had been aware of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's plan to visit China next week in advance, noting that President Lee Jae Myung's recent summit with U.S. President Donald Trump was influenced by such developments.
Presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik made the remarks, hours after the North announced that Kim will attend China's military parade in Beijing on Sept. 3, marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping.
"(We) were aware through relevant agencies and were briefed this morning that it would be announced today," Kang told reporters. "The South Korea-U.S. summit was influenced by these developments at a basic level."
On Monday, Lee and Trump met for their first summit talks in Washington, where Trump expressed his hope to meet Kim this year, while Lee threw his support behind the U.S. president's push for dialogue.
The two leaders' remarks raised speculation that Trump could possibly meet Kim on the margins of the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea's southeastern city of Gyeongju set to open in late October.
Kang, however, said it was much too early to confirm any details of possible talks between the two countries.
When asked about concerns over deepening ties between North Korea, China and Russia, Kang expressed hopes for ties with Beijing to develop toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, while reaffirming that Seoul remains open for inter-Korean dialogue.
Other guests to China's military parade next week include Russian President Vladimir Putin and South Korea's Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik, as well as leaders from Vietnam, Indonesia and Iran.
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