A U.S.-based outlet on North Korea said Pyongyang is expected to send Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son-gyong to the 80th United Nations General Assembly set to be held in New York later this month.

According to NK News, Kim, who was appointed some six years ago, will likely address the Assembly on September 29.

The last time that someone other than Kim Song, the North's permanent representative to the UN, spoke at the Assembly was when then-Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho attended in 2018.

The expected visit by a high-level North Korean official is believed to be an attempt to bolster the regime's multilateral diplomacy following leader Kim Jong-un's debut at a multilateral event during China's "Victory Day" military parade earlier this month.

Attention is also drawn to whether the North Korean vice foreign minister will make contact with American or South Korean officials while in New York.

Meanwhile, South Korea's new UN Ambassador Cha Ji-hoon presented his credentials to UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday.