North Korea says no to political diplomacy in Winter Olympics

Bengaluru, February 8: There is no room for diplomacy in Winter Olympics as North Korea have decided not to meet any US officials during the Pyeongchang Games which begins in the South Korean province on Friday (February 9).

Earlier there were hopes that the Games which will run till February 25 will help resolve a tense stand-off over the North's nuclear weapons programme.

US Vice President Mike Pence, who described North Korea as the world's most tyrannical regime is due to fly to South Korea ahead of the opening ceremony in the mountain resort of Pyeongchang, just 80 km (50 miles) from the heavily armed border with North Korea.

The ceremony will also be attended by a senior delegation of North Korean officials, including the younger sister of leader Kim Jong Un and the North's nominal head of state, Kim Yong Nam.

It is worth mentioning in this context that North and South Korea broke truce only as recently as in January to facilitate former's participation in Winter Olympics.

In a further sign of thaw in bilateral relations, the North and South Korean ice hockey and skiing teams even trained together, though it isn't still clear as to what will happen once the Games are over.

The exact q I was thinking about this morning: North + South Korea are trying to make a big show of unity in #PyongChang2018, but what happens after? https://t.co/RJzToYsH34

— Megan Hess (@mhess4) February 8, 2018

"We've never begged for dialogue with the United States and it'll be the same going forward," director-general of the North American department of North Korea's foreign ministry Cho Yong Sam, was quoted as saying in KNCA news agency.

"To be clear, we've no intention of meeting with the US during our visit to South Korea and no plans to use the Winter Olympics as a political vehicle," Cho added.

South Korea wants to use the event to re-engage with North Korea and open the way for talks to resolve one of the world's most dangerous crises, in which US President Donald Trump and Pyongyang have swapped nuclear threats.

North Korea is set to mark the founding anniversary of its army with a large military parade in Pyongyang, having last month changed the date of the celebration to the eve of the Olympics.

Pence will meet South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Seoul before he attends the Olympic opening ceremony. He will also visit a memorial for 46 South Korean sailors killed in 2010 in the sinking of a warship that Seoul blamed on a North Korean torpedo attack.

(With Agency inputs).