South Korea’s Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon has indicated Pyongyang informed Seoul of Kim Jong-un’s visit to China in advance. 

Answering questions from parliament’s special committee on inter-Korean economic cooperation on Wednesday, Cho said there was “prior communication” between the two Koreas regarding the issue.  

Asked as to when a second North Korea-U.S. summit meeting will take place, the minister said it is too early to tell. He added Pyongyang and Washington are communicating directly and indirectly via various channels about the potential summit and a working-level meeting between their two countries. 

Cho said the two Koreas share the need for bilateral discussions in the new year as they did early last year, noting they held high-level inter-Korean talks on January ninth of last year. 

He said the government will confer with the North to arrange discussions on pending issues, including Kim’s latest trip to China.