Seoul: North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un's "most trustworthy" aide who oversaw ties with the South has died in a traffic accident, Pyongyang's state media said Wednesday, a loss seen as a blow to efforts at reconciliation between the two rivals.
Kim has earned a reputation for ruthlessness after eliminating previous high-ranking officials including his uncle but the announcement of a state funeral for Kim Yang-Gon appears to indicate his death was not part of a fresh purge.
Kim Yang-Gon, who was a secretary of the ruling Workers' Party, "died in a traffic accident at 6:15 am Tuesday at age 73," the Korean Central News Agency said, without giving further details of the incident.
He served three generations of the Kim dynasty which has ruled the North for more than six decades with an iron fist and no tolerance for dissent.
KCNA hailed him as "the dearest and the most trustworthy comrade-in-arms" of current leader Kim Jong-Un, who will head a state funeral for the official on Thursday.
His death was a "great loss" for the party and the people, KCNA said, praising him for his "admirable loyalty and competence".
A career diplomat, Kim Yang-Gon played a leading role in realising the 2007 summit between Kim Jong-Il and South Korean president Roh Moo-Hyun and was the only North Korean official present at their meeting in Pyongyang.
After the sudden death of Kim Jong-Il in 2011, Kim Yang-Gon was known as a key confidante to his son, the young leader Kim Jong-Un, advising him on inter-Korean and international relations.
AFP
