Seoul's unification ministry says 45 South Korean skiers will be flying to North Korea at the top of the hour,... for a two-day training session in the North.
This,... after the two sides appeared to have been skating on thin ice after North Korea canned a joint cultural event with the South ahead of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
Ji Myung-kil starts us off.
South Korea will send non-Olympic skiers to the North's Masikryong Ski Resort for two days of joint training as part of a series of planned events ahead of the Winter Olympics in South Korea.
A group of inspectors from the South visited the venues in the North last week to look around the facilities, the airport and road conditions.
The South Korean skiers will take a chartered flight to the North's Kalma Airport, which is around 45 minutes away from the Masikryong Ski Resort.
The joint events during the PyeongChang Games are seen as a thawing of ties between the two Koreas.
However, a telegram from the North late Monday reportedly blamed "biased" and "insulting" media coverage from the South on the North's planned events for the Olympics.
The North was also angry at South Korean media reports of a possible military parade in Pyongyang on February 8th, a day before the opening ceremony of the Winter Games.
South Korea's unification ministry said the North's sudden decision was regrettable adding that the North should uphold all the remaining agreements that have been made.
Those are the art performances and taekwondo demonstration.
The North is also sending hundreds of delegates, cheerleaders and performers to the South over the course of the Olympics.
The inter-Korean talks which resulted in the agreement came after tensions on the Korean peninsula reached their highest point in decades.
But there have been concerns that the links between the Koreas could breach international sanctions on North Korea's nuclear and missile programs.
"Providing hard cash is not allowed. But apart from that, we can practically provide any conveniences they might need as the U.S. has welcomed the North's participation as well."
Providing cash payments to the North's regime is banned under UN sanctions.
South Korea earlier said it would not pay the fees for using the North's airport and airspace.
Ji Myung-kil, Arirang News.
