North Korea has announced it will not take part in the Tokyo Olympics this year, saying the decision is to protect its athletes from Covid-19.
This is not exactly unexpected, given that the North does not have "good" relations with Japan.
The decision puts an end to South Korea's hopes of using the Games to engage with the North amid stalled cross-border talks.
www.olympicsdiary.com brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"
NK News reports that South Korean unification minister Lee In-young said he wants to send the country’s athletes and cheerleaders to the 2022 Beijing Winter Games using a railway that would pass through North Korean land. The idea itself is more than a decade old, but with just 10 months until the Beijing Olympics, Seoul is gunning for sports diplomacy and other projects to improve inter-Korean relations.
“Depending on what we do, I think the door is still open for dialogue and cooperation.
The Ministry of Unification will do its best to create momentum for reversing [the direction of] inter-Korean relations during the first half of 2021.”
If agreed upon, the train would depart Seoul Station, head to the inter-Korean border station of Dorasan, cross the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and head towards North Korea’s capital city of Pyongyang. After North Koreans get on board and join the South Korean delegation, the train would then head to Sinuiju — a North Korean city at the border of China — and then towards Beijing, where the Olympic games will be held. As Lee sees it, the ride could create a “very symbolic moment” in history.
However, this would require the approval of the USA.
Former unification minister Jeong Se-hyun supports the inter-Korean railroad, but said it likely won’t happen unless relations between Washington and Pyongyang improve.
“Picking North Koreans up and then going to Beijing together — that’s the dream.
But the most important factor here is the United States. Even if North Korea gets on board with the train … The final say on whether the train will be allowed through the Demilitarized Zone is with, unfortunately, the U.S. Forces Korea commander.”
www.olympicsdiary.com brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"
Korea Times subtly pairs story about increased Tinder usage at the Pyeongchang Olympics with photo of condoms, along with this intriguing sentence: "N. Korean athletes are reportedly facing a sex ban imposed by leader Kim Jong-un."https://t.co/Xx2PyeqmHY
— Jonathan Cheng (@JChengWSJ) February 19, 2018
I raised this issue on this site in January.You know those North Korean cheering squads? South Korea is going to pay their hotel and food bills in the South. https://t.co/7CVWXP2ioN pic.twitter.com/xASttPaeoz— Anna Fifield (@annafifield) February 14, 2018
Factoid: she is sanctioned for human rights violations.BREAKING: North Korea intends to send Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, alongside Choi Hui and Ri Son Gwon to S.Korea for Winter Olympics.— Chad O'Carroll (@chadocl) February 7, 2018
Some heavily sanctioned figures to send.
Game on to South Korea: will they play ball?
And if not, will this scupper NK participation?
Whilst the foreigners will be allowed to wave North Korean flags, South Koreans won't be allowed to wave them. Theoretically, South Korean security services will be less likely to beat people up.At last years inter-Korean ice hockey match, violence broke out as undercover South Korean security officials accosted foreigners waving handkerchief-sized DPRK flags.— Chad O'Carroll (@chadocl) February 1, 2018
Under Moon Jae-in, foreigners will be able to wave on the North Korean team: https://t.co/rQNXYeF693 pic.twitter.com/0kpqsZvp55
Meanwhile the USA has just pulled its much touted choice for ambassador to South Korea, Victor Cha. The announcement took many by surprise, as Cha had passed all the security clearances and had been nodded in by the South.#breaking #exclusive Diplomatic sources tell @CNN North Korea is planning to show off dozens of long-range missiles next week to “scare the hell out of the Americans.” https://t.co/glJqq5YcYI— Will Ripley (@willripleyCNN) January 31, 2018
"North Korea never misses an opportunity to miss an opportunity"springs to mind!
North Korea’s women’s ice hockey team has arrived in South Korea. 15 members of North Korea’s national women’s ice hockey team - including 12 players, 1 coach & 2 support personnel - will compete alongside South Korean counterparts in the 2018 Pyeonchang Winter Olympics.
— Will Ripley (@willripleyCNN) January 25, 2018
North Korea's female ice hockey team uses Bauer. But current UN and U.S. sanctions make it illegal for it to import sports equipment, though, especially from the U.S. – yep, that's where we are with sanctions and sports. pic.twitter.com/sNr8PmPXr1
— Chad O'Carroll (@chadocl) January 25, 2018
As I have noted before on this site, North Korea have totally stolen South Korea's thunder wrt the Olympics.North Korea declares February 8 to be the army's founding anniversary and says it will "significantly mark" the occasion, just a day before the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics— BNO News (@BNONews) January 23, 2018
KCNA: "We warn once again the south Korean conservative media persons that the north-south relationship may be disrupted though it took the first good step and an unpredictable incident may occur due to misrepresentation made by them."
— Jonathan Cheng (@JChengWSJ) January 23, 2018
There are two glaring ironies within this current lull in inter Korean hostilities:#SouthKorea's defense authority has assessed that #NorthKorea's intentions behind PyeongChang outreach is to drive a crack into the U.S.-South Korean relationship. https://t.co/QQpQqHgT4N— Strategic Sentinel (@StratSentinel) January 19, 2018
Not everyone is delighted at the choice of flag!Yeah. Like me. That is NOT my goddamned flag. I did NOT salute that rag while I was in the ROK Army. It is not the flag that draped over the coffins of those 46 sailors of the ROKS Cheonan that those bastards murdered.— John Lee (The Korean Foreigner) (@koreanforeigner) January 17, 2018
I repeat. That is NOT my goddamned flag. https://t.co/wEnSrepvbM
Online petitions calling on presidential office to withdraw plan to field unified Korean women #hockey team at #PyeongchangWinterOlympics have collected over 30,000 signatures as of Thurs evening. pic.twitter.com/rq1J7raN3w
— LIM Yun Suk (@yunsukCNA) January 18, 2018
I would normally say "how ironic". However, North Korea doesn't do "irony"!Big news: NKorea may hold military parade on eve of Winter 'Peace' Olympics.— Chad O'Carroll (@chadocl) January 17, 2018
Great chance for DPRK to showcase new ICBMs on global stage while participating in Winter games just one day later.
Format yet to be realized, but worth keeping tabs on:https://t.co/wpU8vZwheg
The diversion has been effectively kyboshed by Tillerson, who says there will be no "freeze for freeze" scenario whereby the USA suspends its military exercises beyond the Olympics.Japan, South Korea and US all agree that talks with North & South Korea are a diversion tactic by North Korea. President Trump’s national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, secretly traveled to San Francisco over the weekend to discuss North Korea with Japan and South Korea.— InsideNK (@inside_nk) January 16, 2018
www.olympicsdiary.com brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"North Korea agrees to more high-level inter-Korean talks on the DMZ this week. Judging by tone of NK state media, they may not be as cordial as the first round. KCNA warned Sunday “the trains and buses carrying our representatives to the Winter Olympics are still in Pyongyang.” pic.twitter.com/2MKqP1uRRT— Will Ripley (@willripleyCNN) January 15, 2018
