Hopes for Dialogue

[Anchor Lead]

North Korea said it will discuss sending a delegation to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. With the communication channel between South and North Korea now open, hopes for inter-Korean dialogue are high at the start of the year.​

[Pkg]

A North Korean official, Ri Son-gwon, who heads the North's agency handling inter-Korean affairs appeared on North Korean television on Wednesday. He said that as ordered by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Pyongyang will discuss with Seoul the issue of sending a delegation to the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.

[Soundbite] Ri Son-gwon(N. Korea's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland) : "We will uphold the will of the Supreme Leadership and discuss working-level matters related to sending a delegation to the Olympics."

He said that the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, the Workers' Party's United Front Department and the State Sports Guidance Commission will take part in the working level discussions with South Korea. Ri also said that leader Kim Jong-un welcomed the support expressed by President Moon Jae-in for North Korea's participation in the Winter Games as well as the South Korean presidential office's official welcome of the news. He said that Kim also stressed that improving cross-border relations is entirely dependent on the attitude of South and North Korean authorities. The official said the North hopes for a successful PyeongChang Olympics but did not say whether it would accept Seoul's proposal for high-level talks.