김연철은 성균관대 정치외교학과를 졸업하고, 정치외교학과 대학원에서 북한의 정치경제로 박사학위를 받았다. (1996.8) 삼성경제연구소 북한연구팀 수석연구원, 통일부 장관 정책보좌관, 통일연구원 원장, 통일부 장관을 역임했다. 현재 인제대학교 통일학부 교수이며, 사단법인 한반도평화포럼 이사장을 맡고 있다. 저서로는 『북한의 산업화와 경제정책』(2001), 『협상의 전략』(2016), 『70년의 대화: 새로 읽는 남북관계사』 등이 있다.

Kim Yeon-chul graduated from the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Sungkyunkwan University and received a Ph.D. (1996.8) He served as Senior Researcher of the North Korean Research Institute at Samsung Economic Research Institute, Policy Advisor to the Minister of Unification, Director of the Korea Institute for National Unification, and Minister of Unification. He is currently a professor at the Faculty of Unification at Inje University, and serves as the chairman of the Korean Peace Forum. His books include “Industrialization and Economic Policy in North Korea” (2001), “Strategy for Negotiation” (2016), and “70 Years of Dialogue: A New Reading in the History of Inter-Korean Relations”.