2018 PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games

Abe Expresses Intent to Visit PyeongChang If Circumstances Allow: Anchor: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Wednesday that he plans to attend the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games if circumstances allow. Abe also reaffirmed his plans to reject any attempts by Seoul to undermine a 2015 bilateral accord on Japan’s wartime sexual slavery. Our Park Jong-hong has this report. Report: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says he will attend the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games and support Japanese athletes if circumstances allow. Abe made the remark when he met with reporters at his official residence on Wednesday. He also expressed his hope to hold a summit with President Moon Jae-in and personally convey Japan's stance on a 2015 bilateral deal on the issue of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery. Japan believes that the wartime issue has been finally and irreversibly resolved with the bilateral accord. As a result, if a summit takes place, Abe is likely to tell Moon that Japan cannot accept Seoul’s requests for Japan to take additional steps regarding the 2015 settlement, including an official apology. Abe said that he would also like to make it clear to President Moon that efforts to maximize pressure on North Korea should be maintained and not be undermined. Abe's remarks come as an official of the presidential office in Seoul told reporters earlier on Wednesday that Japan has officially requested consultations with South Korea to discuss Abe’s attendance at the PyeongChang Olympics. The request follows weeks of speculation that the Japanese leader may boycott the PyeongChang Olympics in protest against Seoul’s attempt to undermine the 2015 agreement. Under the deal, Seoul's former conservative government had agreed to end the decades-old dispute in exchange for one billion yen along with Japan's sincere apology to thousands of Korean victims. The current Moon Jae-in administration has declared the deal flawed but added it will not seek to renegotiate the terms of the agreement. Park Jong-hong KBS World Radio News; 2018-01-24
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Japan Asks S. Korea to Discuss Abe's Attendance at Olympics: Japan has officially requested consultations with South Korea to discuss Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s attendance at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. An official of the presidential office in Seoul told reporters on Wednesday about Tokyo's request. The official said whether or not Abe will be taking part in the sporting event will be known when the Japanese government makes an official announcement. Abe said in an interview with Japan’s Sankei Shimbun released on Wednesday that, if circumstances allow, he would like to attend the opening ceremony of the Games and support Japanese athletes. He also expressed his hope to meet President Moon Jae-in at the opening ceremony and personally tell him that Japan cannot accept Seoul’s requests for Japan to take additional steps regarding a 2015 bilateral deal on the issue of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery. Abe said he believes inter-Korean dialogue and the Olympics should be addressed separately, adding that he would also like to make clear to Moon that efforts to maximize pressure on North Korea should not be undermined.; 2018-01-24
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NHK: Abe Considering Attending PyeongChang Olympics: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is reportedly considering attending the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, after doubts were raised about his presence at the event. Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported on Wednesday that Abe intends to hold talks with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on the sidelines of the Olympics to demand Seoul's faithful implementation of a 2015 deal on Japan's wartime sex slavery and reaffirm close bilateral cooperation on the North Korean issue. South Korea's Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha relayed Moon's invitation for Abe to the Olympics during her trip to Japan last month. But Seoul's renewed stance on the 2015 deal triggered negative public sentiment in Japan on Abe's attendance. However, Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party(LDP) and its coalition partner Komeito reportedly reached the consensus that it is desirable for Abe to attend the Olympics considering the importance of South Korea-Japan relations.; 2018-01-24
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N. Korea to Send 15 Ice Hockey Team Members, Advance Team Thursday: North Korea will send an eight-member delegation to South Korea on Thursday, along with its 15 ice hockey team members who will join the South to form an inter-Korean Olympic team. In a message sent late Tuesday, North Korea notified Seoul that it will dispatch the advance team along with 12 ice hockey players, a coach and two support personnel. The advance team headed by Yoon Yong-bok, a deputy director at North Korea‘s Sports Ministry, and the ice hockey team members are expected to cross the western land border to visit South Korea. The notice came hours after South Korea's Unification Ministry asked the North to speed up joint training of the unified women’s ice hockey team for the Winter Games. The eight-member advance team will reportedly look around accommodations, stadiums and venues for the opening and closing ceremonies and the site for the North's Taekwondo demonstration during their three-day trip.; 2018-01-24
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N. Korea Selects 2 Concert Venues in S. Korea for Olympic Performances: North Korea has selected two concert venues in South Korea for its proposed art performances celebrating the PyeongChang Winter Olympics next month. According to South Korea's Unification Ministry, North Korea sent a message on Tuesday night stating that its art troupe plans to perform at the Gangneung Arts Center in Gangneung on February eighth and at the National Theater of Korea in Seoul on February 11th. The notice came a day after the North's seven-member delegation led by Hyon Song-wol, head of the North's Samjiyon Orchestra, looked around five candidate concert venues in Seoul and Gangneung. North Korea said its delegation plans to use the inter-Korean transit office on the Gyeongui Line at the western border to cross into the South for its visit, which runs from February sixth until February 12th. The South Korean government plans to notify its consent to the North's proposal on Wednesday. The North plans to send a 140-member art performance group, consisting of an orchestra, singers and dancers, for the two concerts.; 2018-01-24
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S. Korean Delegation Begins Inspecting Venues in N. Korea: A South Korean delegation on Tuesday began inspecting facilities in North Korea to help prepare for an inter-Korean cultural event and joint athlete training ahead of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. After crossing the border early in the day for a three-day trip, the 12-member team checked the concert hall and other facilities on Mount Geumgang. In the afternoon, they visited the Masikryong Ski Resort to check out accommodations for South Korean athletes who will train there. A high-ranking Seoul official told reporters that the South Korean delegation set up a direct telephone line at a hotel within the resort that will be used to communicate with officials in the South. After staying the night at the hotel, the South Koreans will conduct inspections at the ski resort Wednesday, as well as the Kalma International Airport in Wonsan before returning to the hotel for one more night. The delegation will return to South Korea at around 5:30 p.m. Thursday via the Donghae Line transit office on the eastern border. That same day, a North Korean delegation led by Yoon Yong-bok, a deputy director at North Korea’s sports ministry, will visit South Korea to inspect PyeongChang Olympic venues and make prearrangements for North Korean athletes expected to participate in the Winter Games.; 2018-01-23
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N. Korean Officials to Return Home after Inspecting Venues in Seoul: A group of North Koreans visiting the South to help arrange a North Korean art performance group's visit for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics has spent its second and final day inspecting venues in Seoul. After visiting performance sites in Gangneung, Gangwon Province on Sunday, the delegation, led by Hyon Song-wol, head of the Samjiyon Orchestra, looked around three potential venues for the troupe’s upcoming performances in Seoul, including Jamsil Students’ Gymnasium, Jangchung Gymnasium and the National Theater of Korea. They are scheduled to head back to the North Monday night through the Custom, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) office at the western border after dinner in Seoul. Based on the results of their inspections, Pyongyang is expected to make a final decision on the venues where the North Korean troupe will perform and the timing of their shows. The North plans to send a 140-member art troupe consisting of the orchestra, singers and dancers for two concerts --- one in Seoul and one in Gangneung.; 2018-01-22
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Gov't Seeks Invitations for N. Korean Performance Instead of Ticket Sales: The government says it is pushing to have performances scheduled by a North Korean orchestra in South Korea next month to be free to view. The North's Samjiyon Orchestra is scheduled to perform in Seoul and Gangneung around the time of the opening of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. In a press briefing Monday, spokesman Hwang Seong-woon for the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said the government has no plans to sell tickets but will mainly give out invitations. Hwang said that details will be decided after concrete information about the performances is determined. Regarding schedules in Seoul by a North Korean delegation which is currently visiting South Korea to inspect the prospective concert venues in advance, the spokesman said the delegation has been given a list of facilities, including concert halls and gymnasiums and related information.; 2018-01-22
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PyeongChang Olympic Torch Arrives in Host Province: The torch for the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games, that arrived in the nation from Greece on November first, has finally arrived in its host province. After 82 days of circulating the country, the Olympic torch on Sunday finally arrived in the northern province of Gangwon. Starting with Cheorwon County, the torch will stop off at 18 cities and counties throughout the province before it reaches PyeongChang, where the opening ceremony for the Winter Games will be held on February ninth. For the torch relay in the province, more than 12-hundred people are expected to march a total of 818 kilometers, under the theme of "Let Everyone Shine" through early February.; 2018-01-22
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'N. Korea's Participation will Contribute to Successful Hosting of Olympics': South Korea's presidential office says that North Korea's Olympic participation will help Seoul host the upcoming Winter Olympics successfully and ease tensions and settle peace on the Korean Peninsula. Presidential press secretary Yoon Young-chan said in a statement on Sunday that the government will listen and pay attention to concerns raised by the media and politicians over the North's Olympic participation and the joint ice hockey team. Yoon said that in spite of all the concerns, South Korea needs to make the Olympics a success without fail, stressing that the North's participation will contribute to the success. The spokesman reassured that the Moon Jae-in government will do its best to minimize any possible disadvantages for each member of the South Korean women's ice hockey team. Yoon said that just two months ago, the Korean Peninsula was headed for the dangers of war due to nuclear and missile launches by the North and there was widespread concern about whether South Korea could properly host the Olympics. But he said that as the North has decided to participate in the Olympics, Seoul has become confident that the event will be conducted peacefully.; 2018-01-22
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