High-Level North Korea Official Arrives in New York

A high-level North Korean official has arrived in New York as part a planned meeting with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo ahead of what the White House is calling a "expected" summit between President Donald Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong-un. 

South Korea's Yonhap news agency reports that Kim Yong Chol, a former military intelligence officer, landed shortly after 2 p.m. on an Air China flight from Beijing. The North Korean delegation was spotted leaving the plan at New York's JFK International Airport. 

Kim is the highest-level representative from North Korea to step foot in the United States since 2000. 

The meeting between Pompeo and Kim is part of preparations for a summit planned for June 12. Trump canceled the meeting last week, citing recent statements from North Korea that were filled with "tremendous anger and open hostility."

Despite Trump's cancellation, preparations for the proposed summit continued, with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korea's Kim Jong-un meeting over the weekend to "exchange their opinions" on Trump and the possibility of the upcoming summit. A delegation consisting of U.S. officials also traveled to North Korea over the weekend, giving the clearest signal that the meeting on June 12 in Singapore may be back on track. 

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