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(2nd LD) N. Korean leader receives Obama's message from Clinton: state media
SEOUL, Aug. 4 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il met with visiting former U.S. President Bill Clinton in Pyongyang on Tuesday and received a "verbal message" from the U.S. president, the North's state media said.
Clinton arrived in North Korea earlier Tuesday in a trip apparently aimed at winning the release of two detained American journalists.
"Bill Clinton courteously conveyed a verbal message of U.S. President Barack Obama to Kim Jong-il," the official Korean Central News Agency said.
"Kim Jong-il expressed thanks for this. He welcomed Clinton's visit to the DPRK (North Korea) and had an exhaustive conversation with him," it said.
The White House, however, denied sending a message through Clinton. "That's not true," its spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters.
North Korea's media report said there was "a wide-ranging exchange of views on the matters of common concern" between Kim and Clinton.
North Korean Foreign Minister Kang Sok-ju and a Workers' Party department director, Kim Yang-gon, attended the meeting, it said.
The National Defense Commission, which oversees the country's military and is chaired by Kim Jong-il, later hosted a dinner for Clinton and his entourage at the state guest house, according to the media report.
Laura Ling and Euna Lee, female reporters from the San Francisco-based media group Current TV, were arrested March 17 near the North Korea-China border while reporting on North Korean defectors. They were sentenced to 12 years of hard labor by the North on charges of illegal entry and hostile acts.
Current TV was co-founded by Al Gore, who was Clinton's vice president.
Clinton's surprise visit raised hopes for renewed momentum for dialogue and a breakthrough in the long-stalled nuclear disarmament talks.
hkim@yna.co.kr
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