
North Korea consented on Sunday to South Korea's plan to send an advance team this week to prepare for a joint cultural event at Mount Geumgang and for joint training sessions of the two Koreas' ski athletes at a North Korean ski resort.
A Unification Ministry official in Seoul said that Ri Son-gwon, chairman of the North's Committee for the Reunification of the Fatherland, sent a message to Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon that gave its approval for the delegation's visit.
The official said that the North hoped that during the advance team's trip to the North, the two sides will hold sufficient consultations on issues discussed at the recent inter-Korean working-level talks.
Last week, the South's government proposed sending a 12-member team to the Mount Geumgang area and Masikryong Ski Resort in the North's eastern region for three days beginning Tuesday.
The two Koreas plan to hold a joint cultural event in the Mount Geumgang area, and their skiers will train together at the ski compound.