Ho Dam | |
|---|---|
| 허담 | |
 Ho in 1972 | |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 1970–1983 | |
| Preceded by | Pak Song-chol |
| Succeeded by | Kim Yong-nam |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 6 March 1929 Genzan, Kankyōnan-dō, Korea, Empire of Japan (today Wonsan, Kangwon Province, North Korea |
| Died | 11 May 1991 (aged 62) Pyongyang, North Korea |
| Political party | Workers’ Party of Korea |
| Spouse | Kim Jong-suk |
| Korean name | |
| Chosŏn'gŭl | 허담 |
| Hancha | 許錟 |
| Revised Romanization | Heo Dam |
| McCune–Reischauer | Hŏ Tam |
Ho Dam (Korean: 허담; MR: Hŏ Dam; March 6, 1929 – May 11, 1991)[1] was a North Korean politician, and Foreign Minister from 1970 to 1983.[2]
He was a member of the ruling Politburo of North Korea's Communist Party, and was also chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, which made nominal efforts to reunite the Communist North with the capitalist South.[2]
As Foreign Minister in 1977, he became the first senior North Korean official to visit the United States. He left the Foreign Minister's job in 1983 and became secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea. In 1980, he accompanied Kim Il Sung to Belgrade, Yugoslavia for the funeral of the Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito (1892-1980).
In 1990 he was named chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly, North Korea's parliament.[2]
Ho Dam died on May 11, 1991, from a long illness, according to KCNA. The news agency did not specify the cause of death.[2]
