A Swedish delegation arrived in Korea on Friday to study the possibility of a Swedish mediation role in peace talks between North and South Korea, the Swedish Foriegn Ministry said Friday.
"The delegation has been sent by Prime Minister Goeran Persson to analyse the conditions for Swedish support of a continued dialogue between North and South Korea," ministry spokeswoman Aasa Arvidsson told AFP.
The delegation, headed by Swedish undersecretary of state for foreign affairs Hans Dahlgren, arrived in Pyongyang Friday and was to travel to Seoul on Saturday, Arvidsson said. She gave no details on who the delegation would meet during the visit.
Arvidsson said the visit followed South Korean President Kim Dae-Jung's recent request that the European Union, and Stockholm in particular, take an active role in advancing the Korean peace process.
During a visit to Stockholm in December, Kim said he saw Sweden and Persson "as being the most respected country and leader for North Korea."
Sweden, which currently holds the EU's six-month rotating presidency, is the only EU member to have diplomatic missions in both North and South Korea.
The two Koreas are still technically at war as only an armistice halted the 1950-53 Korean War.
A historic summit between Kim Dae-Jung and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il in Pyongyang in June produced an accord to move toward reconciliation. There have since been family reunions and other talks.
Kim Dae-Jung has said a full peace treaty would be the key to a permanent reconciliation.
The North Korean leader is expected to visit Seoul this year in return for the June visit – STOCKHOLM (AFP)
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