Political Events Underscore Winter Olympics in South Korea
The 2018 Winter Olympics is underway in South Korea, and for the first time in history, North Korea and South Korea are competing under a neutral flag.
But behind the scenes of the athletics there’s a cascade of political events.
North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un’s sister arrived overnight becoming the first member of her family to visit South Korea since the end of the Korean War.
“Athletes from the two Koreas will work together for victory, and that will resonate with and be remembered in the hearts of people around the world as a sign of peace,” South Korean President Moon Jae-in said in a reception ahead of the ceremony.
As the games unfold, the world’s worries about North Korea’s nuclear threats still linger.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence is at the Olympics to make a statement through his guest, Fred Warmbier, the father of Otto Warmbier who died under mysterious circumstances after being held captive by North Korea.
“We will not allow North Korea to hide behind the Olympic banner the reality that they enslave their people and threaten the wider region,” Pence said Wednesday after meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
While in South Korea, Pence will also meet with North Korean defectors and pay his respects at the Cheonan Memorial in Seoul. The memorial honors the 46 South Korean sailors killed in a 2010 torpedo attack attributed to the North. {eoa}
Reprinted with permission from CBN.com. Copyright The Christian Broadcasting Network, all rights reserved.
