SEOUL -- In the wake of South Korean presidential envoy Lim Dong Won's recent and apparently successful visit to Pyongyang earlier this month, there is renewed optimism not only over resuming inter-Korean dialogue but also on realizing the promised reciprocal visit of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il to Seoul. Just last week, Unification Minister Jeong Se Hyun stated that he was convinced that Kim would visit Seoul soon as promised.
However, overlooked thus far in the guessing game over whether or when Kim may visit is the question of how he will get here. Let's take a closer look at his options.
For sure, it won't be by air. Kim doesn't like to fly. His three week train trip to Russia last summer, together with the extraordinary security precautions that went along with it, proved that. If the North Korean leader didn't feel safe in the vastness of Siberia -- stopping only once en route to Moscow -- how can his safety be guaranteed in Seoul, a metropolis of millions? Probably only by using his 21-car armor-plated train as a base of operations.