Abrar Hussain: The heir to the Samsung empire as well as the leaders of several other South Korean conglomerates are expected go to Pyongyang this week to attend an inter-Korean summit as part of South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s delegation, officials in Seoul confirmed yesterday.
Samsung’s Lee Jae-yong and the heads of the SK and LG groups will all be part of the President’s delegation as he heads for a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The vice president of Hyundai Motor Group — whose founder was a refugee from the North — will also be among the entourage.
Moon has long advocated for closer economic ties across the border, despite multiple sanctions on the North over its atomic weapons and ballistic missile programs. He is set to fly to the North’s capital tomorrow to attend a three-day summit with Kim — his third meeting this year with the young ruler of the isolated country.
The Blue House stated that the delegation of 200 people will consist of top officials from Seoul, including its spy chief, foreign minister and defense chief, as well as prominent figures in the economy, religion, culture and sports fields.
Lee is the de facto leader of the Samsung group, by far the South’s biggest conglomerate, which includes Samsung Electronics — the world’s largest maker of smartphones as well as memory chips. He was released from prison in February after successfully appealing a five-year sentence for perjury, embezzlement and bribery in a scandal that led to the removal of former South Korean President Park Geun-hye last year.
-Source: AFP