Japanese wrestler-turned-lawmaker Antonio Inoki plans to visit North Korea next week for talks with top officials, a source close to the matter has said, just days after the North fired a ballistic missile across northern Japan into the Pacific Ocean.
Inoki, whose real first name is Kanji, an independent member of the House of Councilors, has repeatedly visited North Korea and developed connections with its authorities despite the lack of diplomatic relations between Tokyo and Pyongyang.
Inoki last visited North Korea in September last year, and North Korea carried out its fifth nuclear test while he was there.