Former Spymaster to Lead North Korea’s Olympic Ceremony Delegation<br />In 2010, when two North Korean agents were caught in the South while on a mission to assassinate a high-ranking defector from the North,<br />they said they were dispatched by Mr. Kim’s General Bureau of Reconnaissance, the North’s main spy agency, South Korean officials said.<br />22, 2018<br />SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea said on Thursday that a high-ranking official, who many in the South believe orchestrated a deadly attack in 2010, would lead<br />a delegation to Sunday’s Winter Olympics closing ceremony in the South, another sign the two Koreas are trying to work out a road map toward improving ties.<br />He said he would meet the North Korean leader only if he was assured<br />that their meeting could produce progress in helping end North Korea’s nuclear weapons programs.<br />When visiting South Korea earlier this month to attend the Games’ opening ceremony, Vice President Mike Pence had planned to sit down with Kim Yo-jong in a meeting arranged by South Korea,<br />but the North Koreans backed out at the last minute, according to American officials.<br />Earlier this month, Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, attended<br />the Games’ opening ceremony and met with President Moon Jae-in of South Korea.<br />In 2014, Mr. Kim, who is also a military general, led a delegation to discuss ending hostilities after North<br />and South Korean soldiers exchanged fire across the border.<br />Still, the South Korean government said on Thursday that it would allow Mr. Kim to lead the delegation across the border.
