*EPF502 09/29/00
Text: State Department Statement on North Korean Special Envoy
(Special Envoy to visit Washington October 9-12) (210)

Following is the text of the statement:

(begin text)

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman

September 29, 2000

STATEMENT BY RICHARD BOUCHER, SPOKESMAN

DPRK SPECIAL ENVOY TO VISIT WASHINGTON OCTOBER 9-12

Democratic People's Republic of Korea National Defense Commission First Vice Chairman Cho Myong Nok will visit Washington October 9-12 as the Special Envoy of Chairman Kim Jong Il.

Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright will be the official host of the visit. Cho will also be received by the President in the course of the visit. The Secretary will lead substantive discussions between the two delegations. She will be joined by Ambassador Wendy R. Sherman, Special Advisor to the President and Secretary of State and North Korea Policy Coordinator.

Both the United States and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea believe that Special Envoy Cho's visit constitutes an important step forward in improving bilateral relations and will contribute to the goal of ending the long-standing state of hostility on the Korean Peninsula.

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(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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