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Hyundai Founder Visits N. Korea, to Meet Kim Jong-il
The founder of Hyundai, South Korea's biggest conglomerate, crossed the Demilitarized Zone Wednesday to start a three-day visit to North Korea expected to include talks with its leader, Kim Jong-il.
Hyundai founder Chung Ju-yung and more than 20 Hyundai officials crossed into the North on Wednesday morning, passing through Panmunjom, the one point along the 242-km (150-mile) DMZ where the two Koreas arrange their rare contacts.
Chung relinquished his post as honorary chairman of Hyundai late last month but nevertheless is expected to discuss business opportunities for the group in North Korea with government officials.
Chung's visit comes after South Korean President Kim Dae-jung held the first-ever summit between the two Koreas in Pyongyang earlier this month. Kim and the North's Kim Jong-il signed a joint communique aimed at better ties after a half-century of conflict.
The 84-year-old Chung was born in North Korea and has long taken a leading role in South Korean efforts to help the impoverished nation.
He visited the North twice in 1998, taking 1,001 head of cattle with him.
Chung hoped to take another 500 cattle this time but North Korean quarantine regulations have delayed that plan.
The Hyundai Group has undertaken by far the most ambitious private investment in North Korea, signing a $942 million deal with Pyongyang in 1998 for the rights to develop the North's Mt Kumgang resort area.
It also plans to build an industrial complex in the North.
Chung's son Mong-hun, chairman of Hyundai Asan Corp, which leads the conglomerate's investments in the North, is among those accompanying him.
Hyundai Engineering and Construction President Kim Yoon-kyu, Kim Choong-shik, president of Hyundai Merchant Marine, and Hyundai Securities chief Lee Ik-chi are also part of the entourage.
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