| Kim Yang-gon | |
| Native Name: | 김양건 |
| Native Name Lang: | kr |
| Birth Date: | 1942 4, df=y |
| Birth Place: | Anju-si, Heian'nan-dō (South Pyongan Province), Korea, Empire of Japan |
| Death Place: | North Korea |
| Credits: | , which produces label "Notable credit(s)"; or by |
| Works: | , which produces label "Works" --> |
Kim Yang-gon (Korean: 김양건, 24 April 1942 – 29 December 2015) was a North Korean politician and a senior official of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea.
Kim Yang-gon started his political career as a vice-director of the party's International Liaison Department in 1986, and during this time he also oversaw relations with Japan as head of the DPRK-Japan Friendship Association. He was a recipient of the top Order of Kim Il-sung in 1995. He was promoted to director in 1997 and visited China multiple times during his tenure. In 2005 he also received a position as "councilor" to the National Defence Commission.
Several months after the death of Rim Tong-ok, Kim Yang-gon, considered a confidant to Kim Jong-il, was appointed to replace him as director of the United Front Department of the Workers' Party in March 2007. His first assignment as head of relations with South Korea was a visit to Seoul in November to discuss rapprochement measures with Unification Minister Lee Jae-jeong. At the Party Conference held in September 2010, Kim was also appointed secretary for united front and South Korea policies of the Secretariat and alternate member of the Politburo.
Kim Yang-gon kept his position under Kim Jong-un, and he was awarded the newly created Order of Kim Jong-il in July 2012. He visited South Korea again in October 2014 to attend the closing ceremony of the 2014 Asian Games with Hwang Pyong-so and Choe Ryong-hae, and in late August 2015 to negotiate a deal to halt military provocations around the Demilitarized Zone.
In December 2015, North Korea's news agency reported that Kim Yang-gon died in a car accident.[1] [2] He was lying in state in Sojang Club in Pyongyang and honored in a state funeral.
He was replaced in January 2016 by Kim Yong-chol.[3]
Kim Yang-gon's funeral committee was composed of:[4]
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