Inter-Korean relations have taken a turn for the worse since the inauguration of Lee, who has taken a harder line against North Korea than his two liberal predecessors, including Kim Dae Jung.

Recently, however, Pyongyang has made some conciliatory gestures to Seoul, including sending the delegation to Sunday's funeral and announcing Monday that it would reopen its border to South Korean tourists and allow reunions of divided families.

Kim Dae Jung is to receive a state funeral, only the second in South Korea's history after the first was held in 1979 for former president and dictator Park Chung Hee, who was assassinated by his former intelligence chief while in office.