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. ==Death==