SG/SM/9314
                                                                                                                        19 May 2004

Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy to Visit Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, 18 - 22 May

NEW YORK, 18 May (UN Headquarters) -- Following is the text of a statement attributable to the Spokesman for Secretary-General Kofi Annan:

Maurice F. Strong will visit the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) as the Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General from 18 to 22 May, to continue the Secretary-General’s initiative aimed at supporting the Beijing process and assisting multilateral efforts to negotiate diplomatically a comprehensive solution to the problems in the Korean Peninsula.  While in Pyongyang, Mr. Strong will discuss with the DPRK Government possible ways in which the Secretary-General might be of further help in that regard, as well as humanitarian and economic aspects of this situation.

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