Hyundai chief Hyun meets with N. Korean leader Kim

BEIJING, Aug. 16 Kyodo -
North Korean leader Kim Jong Il met with Hyundai Group Chairwoman Hyun Jung Eun
in Pyongyang on Sunday after Hyun extended her stay in the North Korean capital
five times in hope of meeting Kim, according to the North's state media.
Kim and Hyun talked ''in an atmosphere of compatriotic feelings, remembering
the predecessors of the Hyundai Group with deep emotion,'' while Kim expressed
gratitude for a gift the chairwoman presented him, the official Korean Central
News Agency said.
Kim gave a luncheon for Hyun and her party, it added.
Hyun, who has been in North Korea since Monday, went to the country originally
to seek the release, later granted, of a Hyundai employee who had been detained
since March.
The employee, Yu Seong Jin, returned to South Korea on Thursday, but Hyun
remained to press for continuation of cross-border tourism projects that have
been beset by difficulties.
Hyun met Kim in 2005 and 2007 during trips to Pyongyang, according to South
Korea's Yonhap News Agency.
==Kyodo