Bangkok sends invite to N. Korean FM

Bangkok sends invite to N. Korean FM

BANGKOK (AFP): North Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs Paek Nam-Sun has been formally invited by Thailand to visit in July at the time Bangkok hosts the annual ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the Thai foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

The development follows last month's announcement by Thailand, which currently chairs the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its corresponding security forum ARF, that the isolated state had indicated it was "very keen" to join ARF.

Thailand has yet to receive a reply from the Stalinist state, he added.

Oum Maolanon, a foreign ministry spokesman, said that although the visit was timed around the ASEAN ministerial meet and ARF from July 21 to July 27, it did not mean that the North Korean minister would attend the security forum.