North Korea state

North Korean reporter Kim Kang-kuk reacts violently to a rally by activists condemning the poor human rights conditions in his country, during a visit to South Korea in 2003. / Yonhap

By Choi Ha-young

A reporter dealing with South Korean affairs in Pyongyang was part of the North Korean delegation taking part in vice-ministerial-level talks with the South, Wednesday.

According to the Ministry of Unification, the delegation included Kim Kang-kuk, who works at the state-run Korea Central News Agency (KCNA).

Kim is known to have covered the first inter-Korean contact in nearly two years, Jan. 9, as a reporter. However, he participated in Wednesday's meeting as a negotiator. He has covered inter-Korean events for a long time.

He has visited the South a few times in the past ― the Daegu Summer Universidad in 2003 and an inter-Korean cultural event held in Incheon in 2004. During his visit in 2003, he protested against South Korean human rights activists who were criticizing atrocities in the totalitarian country.

According to previous reports, Kim also covered a reunion of divided families at the North's Mt. Geumgang, and Red Cross talks between the two Koreas.

The KCNA reporter's appearance Wednesday could indicate that the North may send a number of journalists to the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games, as mentioned in a joint statement issued after the first inter-Korean meeting. The North said it would send a large-scale delegation including athletes, a cheerleading squad, performers, a taekwondo demonstration team and reporters.

The third inter-Korean talks aimed to tackle detail over the North's participation in the Olympics next month. The two Koreas primarily dealt with cultural events in the second meeting, Monday, in which the North said it would send a 140-member performance troupe during the Games.

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