Singaporean foreign minister arrives in Beijing after visit to Pyongyang

Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan arrived in Beijing on Saturday after visiting Pyongyang to discuss details about North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's imminent visit to the country for a historic summit with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan arrives in Beijing on June 9, 2018, after visiting Pyongyang to discuss details about North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's imminent visit to the country for a historic summit with U.S. President Do
Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan arrives in Beijing on June 9, 2018, after visiting Pyongyang to discuss details about North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's imminent visit to the country for a historic summit with U.S. President Do

After he arrived at Beijing International Airport, Balakrishnan was escorted away in a vehicle prepared by the Singaporean Embassy, avoiding contact with the media.

He left for Pyongyang on Thursday for a two-day trip to discuss logistics, security and other details of the June 12 summit with his North Korean counterpart Ri Yong-ho. While visiting the North, he also met with Kim Yong-nam, the nominal head of state.

Which airline Kim Jong-un will use and which route the plane will take to the summit venue might have also been discussed.

The visit seems to have been made to "fine-tune the last details about diplomatic protocol and security issues to host Kim Jong-un," a source in Beijing said.

Balakrishnan is expected to return to Singapore later in the day.

By the Yonhap.

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