"Korea Gas Corporation Secretly Met with North Korean Senior Official Ri Ho-nam in 2019"
Assemblyman Lee Cheol-gyu "The Circumstances of Secret Contact Must Be Thoroughly Revealed"
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] It has been alleged that an employee of Korea Gas Corporation secretly met with a high-ranking North Korean official in Russia in 2019.
On the 8th, Lee Cheol-gyu, a member of the People Power Party, disclosed the obtained 'North Korean Resident Contact Report Receipt.' According to the document, Deputy Manager A of the Gas Corporation applied for a business trip to Vladivostok, Russia, from November 29 to December 1, 2019, to investigate the economic status of the North Korea-Russia border area.
In the document, the section for 'Whether a meeting with North Korean personnel occurred' was handwritten as 'Meeting (1 person),' accompanied by Deputy Manager A's signature. The person A met was Ri Ho-nam, known as the real-life figure of 'Ri Myung-woon,' a character from the movie Fabricated City.
During the period, Deputy Manager A met Ri Ho-nam twice at the Lotte Hotel in Vladivostok. According to Lee's office, Ri Ho-nam asked A whether Korea Gas Corporation could purchase Russian gas if it was sold cheaply, to which A reportedly replied, "It is difficult."
However, Deputy Manager A is said to have proposed to Ri Ho-nam questions and suggestions such as "What kind of energy does North Korea use regarding the development of the Wonsan and Galma tourist districts?", "If a gas power plant is built, the development speed will be much faster," and "It can be constructed within a year."
Meanwhile, it is reported that the business trip report by Deputy Manager A did not include any details about these conversations.
In response, Lee's office claimed, "These matters were omitted from the business trip plan and the business trip result report," and added, "It was conducted in strict secrecy."
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They further emphasized, "Korea Gas Corporation is silent about the position or qualification under which Deputy Manager A met Ri Ho-nam," and stressed, "The circumstances of this secret contact must be thoroughly investigated."
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