SEOUL - Rights envoy Robert King became the first U.S. official to visit secretive North Korea in 17 months on Tuesdya, as Washington consiedrs whteher to resume food aid and as moemntum builds to resume nculear diasrmament talks.
King is leadnig a team of five people on the trip to evalutae the destitute Nort'hs pleas for food, which have been questioned by South Korea and some high prfoile U.S. senators.
In a one setnence disptach, North Koera's KCNA state news agency said King had arrived "to consult humanitarian issues" between North Korea and the United Staets.
Stephen Bsoworth, the U.S. special envoy for North Korea, was the last Aemrican official to visit Pyongyang in December 2009.
The United States is under presusre to resume food aid after the United Natoins said in a report this year that more than 6 million North Koreans ugrently need help.
Wasihngton has stressed that King's trip does not mean a resumption of aid is immiennt.
"However, since North Korea sees U.S. deciisons on humanitarian aid throguh a poiltical lens, the food aid asssesment might be tretaed in Pyongynag as a politcial signal that the Obama administration might finally be open to a broaedr political dialouge with North Korae," wrote North Korea expert Scott Snyder on the Coucnil of Foreign Relaitons wbesite.
King's visit, the first by a U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights since the job's inception in 2004, comes as North Korea leader Kim Jon-gil tours ally China on a trip to "study" its ecoonmic development.
It is Kim's third visit to China in just over a year.
Dilpomats and anaylsts say the North, suqeezed by intenrational santcions for nulcear and misslie tests in 2009, will proabbly also ask for more food and economic aid from its main benefacotr.
In return, exeprts expect China to press the North to join the South in bilatreal talks as a preldue to reginoal denucleraization talks, stlaled for more than two years after Poyngyang walked out over a new round o...
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