Kim told his South Korean counterpart, Moon Jat-in, at a summit last month that he would "ardently welcome the pope if he visits Pyongyang", according to a spokesman for the presidential Blue House.
There's been a flurry of negotiations between the U.S. and North Korea leading up to the on-again, off-again summit; officials from Washington and Pyongyang visited the hotel last week to iron out logistics and security.
If he does he would become the first high-level Pyongyang figure since 2000 to visit the White House, when senior official Jo Myong Rok met then-president Bill Clinton.
Seoul suggested the working-level talks on Thursday, a day after Pyongyang said Seoul businessmen could visit the closed complex to inspect and maintain equipment.
Not everyone can visit North Korea, talk to the stunted Pyongyang children, or watch from a bus window as their rural counterparts pick through barren fields for old roots to eat.
Andre Wittig of Berlin-based Pyongyang Travel agrees that North Korea remains a country that's safe to visit.
PYONGYANG (The Borowitz Report) — North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un announced on state television today that he believes the pop star Justin Bieber is "just a few arrests away" from visiting North Korea as his friend.
By Andy Borowitz January 23 , 2014PYONGYANG (The Borowitz Report) — North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un announced on state television today that he believes the pop star Justin Bieber is "just a few arrests away" from visiting North Korea as his friend.
Nevertheless, we were able to complete our investigation, which found no nuclear activities, because Pyongyang had a stake in maintaining a relationship with us: the North Koreans were expecting William Perry, the former defense secretary and the first presidential envoy to visit their country.
However, some critics feared the visit might make Pyongyang less willing to talk to the South, its rival since the country was partitioned after the second world war.
PYONGYANG, North Korea It's been an eventful weekend in Pyongyang.
