The two Koreas to march together at the upcoming Winter Olympics
“We need to build on these small signs of hope,” said UN chief Antonio Guterres.
North Korea and South Korea will march together at the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang Olympics in South Korea, under a unified Korea flag. The deal, reached during the recent diplomatic talks, also includes their first joint Olympic team, in women’s ice hockey.
The two countries are formally known as the Republic of Korea or ROK for South Korea, and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea or DPRK for North Korea.
As reported by the Assosciated Press, the agreements came after three rounds of talks which began after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, in his New Year’s speech, said that he was willing to send a delegation to the Olympic Winter Games.
“The presidential office […] welcomed the outcome of inter-Korean dialogue over North Korea’s participation in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games, calling it a chance to reduce tension between the divided Koreas,” reads a statement on behalf of South Korea President Moon Jae-in.
It is not the first time that the two Koreas have walked together at the Olympics. They first marched united at the opening ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Olympics in Australia.
It happened again in 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. And again at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. They also marched together under a unified flag at several international and regional events in 1991 — when the unified flag first appeared — and later in 2002, 2003, and 2006.
The so-called Korean Unification Flag used in past events is a blue image of the Korean Peninsula on a white background.
The topic of athletes of the two Koreas walking together at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in South Korea emerged yesterday during the daily press briefing at the White House, when a journalist asked Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders whether President Donald Trump or the White House “support both North Korea and South Korea marching together and coming more closely together during the Olympics?.”
Sanders said that the US sees “this as an opportunity for the regime to see the value of ending its international isolation by denuclearization — we still are very much focused and hope that that happens.”
“This isn’t the first time that the two countries have marched together,” she added. “We hope that this experience gives North Korea and its athletes a small taste of freedom, and that rubs off and is something that spreads and impacts in these negotiations and in these conversations.”
In a statement to the United Nations Security Council, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the decision of North Korea to participate in the Winter Olympics was encouraging.
“We need to build on these small signs of hope, and expand diplomatic efforts to achieve the peaceful denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in the context of regional security,” he said.
Though, responding to questions from the press he cautioned: “My only concern is sometimes that we look at these symbols of goodwill and positive indications and we forget that the main problem is yet to be solved.”
According to a timeline released by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the history of North Korea’s participation in the Summer and Winter Games is tumultuous:
- 1988 — Despite negotiations, athletes from the DPRK did not participate at the Olympic Games Seoul 1988.
- 1998 — The IOC started talks for participation of a unified Korean team at the Olympic Games Sydney 2000.
- 2000 — Athletes from the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of the ROK and the NOC of the DPRK marched jointly behind the Korean unification flag in the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games Sydney 2000, but competed for their respective NOCs.
- 2004 — Athletes from the NOC of the ROK and the NOC of the DPRK marched jointly behind the Korean unification flag in the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games Athens 2004, but competed for their respective NOCs.
- 2006 — Athletes from the NOC of the ROK and the NOC of the DPRK marched jointly behind the Korean unification flag in the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Winter Games Turin 2006, but competed for their respective NOCs.
- 2014 — The IOC started to evaluate the situation on the Korean Peninsula, beginning with discussions at the level of Head of State and with the United Nations.
- 2014 — The IOC offered a special program of support to athletes from the NOC of the DPRK for their qualification for the Olympic Winter Games Pyeongchang 2018.
- 2016 — During the Olympic Games Rio 2016, a meeting was held between the IOC and a high-level governmental delegation from the DPRK. In this meeting, the IOC also discussed its special program of support to the athletes of the NOC of the DPRK to help with their qualification and participation within the framework of the United Nations sanctions.
- 2017 — Starting in January 2017, this process was amplified with a series of meetings and talks with Heads of State and Government from different countries in the region and beyond, and also at the United Nations; and with continuing discussions with the NOC of the DRPK.
- 2017 — Numerous meetings and consultations with representatives of the NOC of the DPRK were held. The talks included the evaluation of the special programme of support that started in 2014. The programme was developed with a special view to athletes potentially qualifying for and participating at the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018.
- November 2017 — The IOC President, in his address to the United Nations General Assembly, expressly reiterated the invitation “to everyone to join us at the Olympic Winter Games 2018” and continued by saying: “Everyone is invited to celebrate our shared values, to celebrate the best of the human spirit, to celebrate our unity in diversity.” The UN General Assembly adopted by consensus the resolution “Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal”. The consensus for the Olympic Truce resolution included both the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as well as the future hosts of the Olympic Games: Japan, China, France and the United States of America.
