Some major developments on the cultural front between the two Koreas.
The South and North have agreed to hold an inter-Korean basketball game next month in Pyongyang,... and have also said yes to joint teams for the Asian Games in August.
Park Hee-jun reports. During inter-Korean sports talks held on Monday at the truce village of Panmunjom,... South and North Korea agreed to host a series of sports events to boost inter-Korean sports cooperation.
According to Seoul's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism,.. the two Koreas said through a joint statement that they will host a friendly basketball game in Pyongyang.
It will take place sometime between July 3rd and July 6th to commemorate the first inter-Korean agreement on unification that was reached on July 4th, 1972.
The two Koreas will play another game in Seoul during the fall.
This comes after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, who is known to be a huge basketball fan,... proposed holding the games during the inter-Korean summit in late April.
The two sides have also agreed to march together at the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta in August,... under the Korean Unification Flag,... and they'll walk in to the traditional Korean song 'Arirang.'
They will form unified teams for certain games, but they have yet to decide on what those games will be.
The two Koreas also plan on creating combined teams for the Asian Para Games, along with other international sport competitions.
To do so, they will coordinate with the Olympic Council of Asia and other international sports organizations.
South and North Korea plan to sort out the details through the exchange of documents,... and will do their best to continue the momentum of sports cooperation that was sparked earlier this year prior to and during the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
“As the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics helped start the process towards peace talks on the Korean Peninsula,... the two Koreas are focused on carrying on that momentum to strengthen inter-Korean ties. And with the lineup of sports events for the two Koreas,... “sport” is expected to play an even bigger role in their relations. Park Hee-jun, Arirang News."
