[Yonhap News Photo]
SEOUL, Jan. 02 (Aju News) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in welcomed Pyongyang's peace overture, urging his government to take swift steps for the resumption of frozen inter-Korean dialogue and North Korea's participation in next month's Winter Olympics.
Moon's comment at a cabinet meeting Tuesday came a day after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said in his New Year message that he is willing to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics to be held in South Korea's eastern ski resort of Pyeongchang on February 9-25.
Kim called for urgent inter-Korean talks on North Korea's participation in the Winter Games and suggested the two Koreas should seek an "epochal" change in 2018 by easing tensions. "Above all, North and South Korea should ease acute military tensions and create a peaceful environment on the Korean peninsula," he said.
North Korea is responding to his earlier proposal to turn the Pyeongchang event into an "epoch-making" chance to improve cross-border relations, Moon said, adding related government agencies should come up with follow-up measures to quickly restore inter-Korean talks and realize the presence of a North Korean delegation in Pyeongchang.
However, Moon stressed Seoul should closely coordinate with its allies and the international community to improve inter-Korean relations and resolve the North Korean nuclear issue simultaneously. "Improving inter-Korean relations is not a problem that can be solved separately from the North Korean nuclear issue."
A North Korean delegation in Pyeongchang requires approval from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), although IOC President Thomas Bach promised to grant North Korean athletes wild card entries.
On Monday, Lee Hee-beom, the chief organizer of next month's Winter Games, said North Korea could participate in events such as figure skating, short track, cross-country skiing and women's hockey. "The IOC's basic principle is that North Korea can compete in any event it wishes," he said.
North Korea boycotted the 1988 Summer Olympics hosted by Seoul, but it sent a delegation to the 2014 Asian Games in the South's western port of Incheon.
Relations were strained in 2010 when Seoul blamed a North Korean submarine for torpedoing the warship Cheonan. The incident froze cross-border exchanges and trade. In November the same year, the North shelled a front-line island, killing four South Koreans and briefly triggering concerns of a full-scale conflict.
North Korea's unyielding push for the development of missiles and nuclear weapons has aggravated relations.
reporter
Lim Chang-won
cwlim34@ajunews.com
![[OPINION] The G7 and the Framework for Peace](https://image.ajunews.com/content/image/2023/05/24/20230524174028363050.jpg)
