North, South Korean teams to march as one at Olympics

[timosman]

https://www.sfgate.com/world/article...t-12505134.php

January 17, 2018


^{South and North Korean officials leave a meeting after agreeing to form a unified Olympic team.}

North and South Korea agreed Wednesday to have their athletes march together under one flag at the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics next month and to field a joint women’s hockey team, the most dramatic gesture of reconciliation between the two nations in a decade or more.

Seoul has said in the past that it hoped such a move could contribute to a political thaw after years of high tensions over the North’s nuclear and missile tests.

The games will begin Feb. 9 in Pyeongchang, South Korea, and the women’s hockey squad will be the first combined Korean team for the Olympics, and the first unified team since their athletes played together for an international table-tennis championship and a youth soccer tournament in 1991.

The two countries’ delegations will march at the opening ceremony behind a “unified Korea” flag that shows an undivided Korean Peninsula, negotiators from both sides said after talks at the border village of Panmunjom.

The North will send 230 supporters to the games, and negotiators agreed that supporters of both Koreas would root together for athletes from both countries.

The prospect of North and South Koreans cheering together could help South Korea President Moon Jae-in, who has been pushing for dialogue and reconciliation with the North, even as President Trump has threatened the North with “fire and fury like the world has never seen” should it put the security of Americans and their allies at risk.

The two countries also agreed Wednesday that their skiing teams would train together in the Masikryong ski resort in North Korea. The resort, a showpiece project of the North’s leader, Kim Jong Un, was opened in 2013.

South Korean officials said Wednesday that the North’s delegation would include at least 550 people.

[dannno]

Wow, can you imagine if this happened a few years ago??

They would be treating Obama like the Savior of the world...

Lemme guess, msm is giving Trump no credit for this?

[nikcers]

Wow, can you imagine if this happened a few years ago??

They would be treating Obama like the Savior of the world...

Lemme guess, msm is giving Trump no credit for this?

They were really happy when he bombed Syria.

[nikcers]

Remember when Dannno said Syria wouldn't be a boondoggle? I remember..

[dannno]

Quick! Let's change the topic to Syria!!

[nikcers]

Hey guys I got Dannno to talk about Syria.

[Slave Mentality]

Wow, can you imagine if this happened a few years ago??

They would be treating Obama like the Savior of the world...

Lemme guess, msm is giving Trump no credit for this?

I give him credit. Maybe the unhinged WWE Nitro nuke-twittering freaked there asses out enough to want to do something to stop the madness. 6D chess maybe.

[nikcers]

I give him credit. Maybe the unhinged WWE Nitro nuke-twittering freaked there asses out enough to want to do something to stop the madness. 6D chess maybe.

Dannno gave Trump credit when he only bombed Syria for 15 minutes now we are installing bases are overthrowing Assad i would wait for this to progress before you give Trump credit. There is a reason why Trump likes to claim that he doesn't like divulging his foreign policy strategy all that means is he parades around pretending not to be a neocon.

[Influenza]

Threatening nuclear holocaust on North Korea must really have caused this display of unity, which has certainly not been used many times in the past 2 decades. It was truly worth it to make the USA appear to be lead by an unhinged childish maniac who threatens unprecedented military action on twitter. Remember when I praised Trump's pinprick strike on Syria, that would never be escalated into a larger quagmire? Forget that I was totally wrong about that - My daddy Trump is actually Magnus Carlsen and is a total genius
https://youtu.be/T9bEkGd1AVo?t=48s -dannno

[Influenza]

Oh, and forget about the fact that the Trump administration actually hated that there was dialogue happening between the Koreas.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...or-nikki-haley

[goldenequity]

U.S. Nuke Sub Port Call Canceled for Fear of Agitating N.Korea
http://english.chosun.com/m/svc/arti...=2018011801300

Al-Masdar News-@TheArabSource · 11 min.
Russia begins delivery of S-400 missile systems to China
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article...-china-source/

Russia fully complies with UNSC resolutions on N. Korea, demands that U.S. do the same - Foreign Ministry source
Interfax

RUSSIA DEMANDS THAT U.S. FULFILL UN SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS ON N. KOREA, COMMITMENT TO POLITICAL AND DIPLOMATIC SETTLEMENT OF SITUATION ON KOREAN PENINSULA - SOURCE IN RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY

Seoul defends joint training at N.K. ski resort as part of efforts for 'Peace Olympics'
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news...15.html?sns=tw



BBC News - North Korea crisis: South to continue talks with 'clear eyes'
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-42727481

South Korea says it will continue high-level talks with North Korea with "clear eyes" amid global warnings
that Pyongyang might be playing for time to continue its nuclear-arms programme.

"We have to make the most" of the opportunity, South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha told the BBC.

"I think we understand North Korea better than anybody, having dealt with North Korea for decades, having had series of discussions off and on.

"We haven't had any significant engagement in the recent past - but this is an opportunity.

"You can have all kinds of theories of why they're here (at the talks).
There are, obviously, calculations on the part of the North Korea decision-makers as to their actions.

"But in the end we have to make the most of it."

Ms Kang also said South Korea and its allies were "very much on the same page" regarding the longer term - the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.

And the foreign minister said Seoul wanted more humanitarian aid to be sent to North Korea as sanctions were beginning to take effect.

If the plans are realised, a hundreds-strong North Korean delegation - including 230 cheerleaders, 140 orchestral musicians and 30 taekwondo athletes - could attend the Winter Olympics.

It will mean the opening of the cross-border road for the first time in almost two years.

The two countries have also agreed to field a joint team for the sport of women's ice hockey.
It would be the first time athletes from both Koreas have competed together.

The Games will take place in February in Pyeongchang.

The North has also agreed to send a smaller, 150-member delegation to the Paralympics in March.

The agreement will have to be approved by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) meeting on Saturday,
because North Korea has missed registration deadlines or failed to qualify.

South Korea will also need to find ways to host the North Korean delegation
without violating UN Security Council sanctions outlawing cash transfers to Pyongyang and blacklisting certain senior North officials.

[The Gold Standard]

Oh, and forget about the fact that the Trump administration actually hated that there was dialogue happening between the Koreas.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...or-nikki-haley

That's ok. We'll bomb the $#@! out of South Korea too then. These orientals are all the same anyway. Heil Trump, the savior of the world!

[timosman]

That's ok. We'll bomb the $#@! out of South Korea too then. These orientals are all the same anyway. Heil Trump, the savior of the world!

Make sure it looks like an accident otherwise Chiners will be pissed.

[dannno]

That's ok. We'll bomb the $#@! out of South Korea too then. These orientals are all the same anyway. Heil Trump, the savior of the world!

Um, according to the video, that's actually what past administrations have threatened to do on multiple occasions..

I don't see Trump himself coming out against this, shouldn't he be on the phone with someone if it was such a bad thing that he was against?

Or is it possible that you have watched and fell for far too much fake news about Trump?

[dannno]

Oh, and forget about the fact that the Trump administration actually hated that there was dialogue happening between the Koreas.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...or-nikki-haley

9:55 nice

[Origanalist]

If they fielded a joint gay figure skating pair we would know they were serious about peace.

[timosman]

If they fielded a joint gay figure skating pair we would know they were serious about peace.

I would say this strategy is underutilized in international relations.

[The Gold Standard]

Or is it possible that you have watched and fell for far too much fake news about Trump?

Who hired Nikki Haley?

[dannno]

Who hired Nikki Haley?

Who gives a $#@!? Why don't we talk about the reality of what actually matters instead of talking about what CNN wants to talk about?

[AZJoe]

Koreas’ Olympic Détente Upends Washington Strategy

The 20+ nations in Vancouver talking about North Korea repeatedly heard the same message from US officials: pay no attention to the bilateral talks between North and South Korea, with officials suggesting they not be “fooled” by the talks and suggesting that nothing would come of them.

That’s a problem for the US though, because something is coming of those talks. North and South Korea … made big progress in just a few meetings, agreeing to march unified at next month’s Winter Olympic, and even field a common team for ice hockey.

Significant reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula seems to be happening, and it’s a big blow to Trump Administration strategy, which has centered on isolating North Korea and presenting the whole world, beyond China and Russia of course, as unified against them.

If even South Korea sees the merits of diplomacy in the face of US talk of military action, the US unwillingness to engage in direct talks with North Korea looks all the more like the real aberration …

[Raginfridus]

Good. Are Russia still banned? Maybe they can collude with us? :P

[AZJoe]

In Midst of North-South Progress Trump’s Tillerson Threatens Military Action Against North Korea

Following up on Tuesday’s statements from Vancouver that the US and allied nations want to ignore the North Korea diplomatic efforts with South Korea and pursue new sanctions, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson piled on with a threat of US military action against North Korea. …

North Korea has repeatedly suggested negotiations in recent weeks, and been rebuffed every single time by the US. …

The US position, as stated now, boils down to pretending diplomacy is not ongoing and threatening to start a massive war with North Korea to punish them for the lack of diplomacy, even though important bilateral talks are in fact ongoing and … the US refuses to participate.

This makes the position increasingly puzzling and nonsensical, as the US keeps threatening war despite positive developments, presents diplomacy as an end-goal while spurning every opportunity to engage in it …

[Raginfridus]

I thank Trump when I piss in the bowl w/o a splash on the seat. I hope I can credit him for nuclear winter too.


Our Presidents never tire of playing cosmic kill joy and world cop. What's NK gonna do, nuke the olympics?

[TheTexan]

Dannno gave Trump credit when he only bombed Syria for 15 minutes now we are installing bases are overthrowing Assad i would wait for this to progress before you give Trump credit. There is a reason why Trump likes to claim that he doesn't like divulging his foreign policy strategy all that means is he parades around pretending not to be a neocon.

I don't think you're seeing the bigger plan in motion here. All of the bombing, military action, etc is all part of a bigger plan to move towards a non-interventionist foreign policy.

Read Art of the Deal a couple times and then I think you'll see this differently.

[Raginfridus]

I don't think you're seeing the bigger plan in motion here. All of the bombing, military action, etc is all part of a bigger plan to move towards a non-interventionist foreign policy.

Read Art of the Deal a couple times and then I think you'll see this differently.

Has Trump read The Art of War though? Clearly Kim is using the Olympics as a diversion in his grand scheme to usurp our democracy and steal our freedoms. While Trump and every bean counter are occupied with the games, he will sink Guam.

[TheTexan]

Has Trump read The Art of War though? Clearly Kim is using the Olympics as a diversion in his grand scheme to usurp our democracy and steal our freedoms. While Trump and every bean counter are occupied with the games, he will sink Guam.

That does remain an option. It's one of the reasons why Trump is so successful, he always has a plan B if plan A fails, and plan C if plan B fails, and so on

[The Gold Standard]

Who gives a $#@!? Why don't we talk about the reality of what actually matters instead of talking about what CNN wants to talk about?

I don't know what CNN wants to talk about, nor do I care. You're insinuating that Trump is happy the Koreas are talking, yet he hired the miserable bitch that hates it and put her in a position to do something about it. The way you people bend yourselves into pretzels to defend this piece of $#@! is unbelievable. It's like a programmed response.

[dannno]

I don't know what CNN wants to talk about, nor do I care. You're insinuating that Trump is happy the Koreas are talking, yet he hired the miserable bitch that hates it and put her in a position to do something about it. The way you people bend yourselves into pretzels to defend this piece of $#@! is unbelievable. It's like a programmed response.

Oh ya? What is she going to do? It's the $#@!ing UN!!!

Trump seemed genuinely happy about medical cannabis being legal and allowing states to legalize. In the 90s he advocated legalizing all drugs. Now he is running as a Republican and he hired Jeff Sessions and people think Trump wants to lock up people for weed. Sorry, that is stupid. That's not why Sessions is there. He is there for reasons you will find out soon. Jeff Sessions is not going to start locking people up for weed, and if he does, I guarantee there will be a huge positive backlash and the feds will change some of the laws.

You are getting distracted from what is actually happening by mainstream media talking points.

[Swordsmyth]

North Korea may be canceling a trip planned for its leading performing artists to the South, only 12 hours after Pyongyang agreed to send the delegation to check South Korean facilities ahead of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. The possible cancelation came late Friday evening, Seoul time, Yonhap reported.

An unnamed South Korean unification ministry official said the message from the North included the word "stop," when describing the reversal of an earlier decision, according to the report.
"About 10 p.m. on Friday, North Korea notified our side a trip scheduled for [Saturday] will be stopped," or suspended, the official said.
The memo was from the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea's vice chairman.
The letter was addressed to Unification Minister Cho Myung-gyun.
The inter-Korea channel of communication in Panmunjom is open on the weekend, and Seoul plans to confirm the reasons for the sudden reversal.
It is unclear whether the trip has been definitely canceled or postponed ahead of the Winter Games.

More at: https://www.upi.com/https:/www.upi.c...5811516382998/

[AZJoe]

Article from ZeroHedge: Washington And Allies Go Orwellian On Korea Peace Talks

Just as North and South Korea achieve important peaceful exchanges, Washington and its NATO allies appear to be moving with determination to sabotage the initiative ...

Further, the reckless, gratuitous provocations beg the conclusion that the United States is indeed trying to start a war. ...

Meanwhile, unprecedented accusations this week by US President Donald Trump that Russia is supporting North Korea to evade United Nations sanctions also point to the danger that any conflict could spiral ... Trump’s verbal broadside suggests that Washington is trying to undermine the nascent talks between the two Koreas, talks which Russia and China have both applauded as a long-overdue diplomatic effort ...

The [Vancouver] conference, co-hosted by Canada’s Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, issued a stridently bellicose statement, calling in effect for North Korea to surrender its nuclear weapons or face US-led military action. Significantly, and pointedly, China and Russia were not invited ... The anachronism of countries like Britain, Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Netherlands and Norway attending a conference on the Korean crisis while Asia-Pacific powers Russia and China being excluded ... is not only absurd ... it reprises a provocative “war summit” message. ...

what the Vancouver gathering demonstrated was the willingness by the US and its allies to circumvent the United Nations Security Council and the previously established regional Six-Party forum involving the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia and the US. ...

Tillerson laid out a belligerent agenda ... The agenda included the precondition of North Korea giving up its nuclear program unilaterally; and it also flatly rejected the proposal made by Russia and China for a “freeze” in all military activities on the Korean Peninsula as a step to get comprehensive settlement talks going. ...

The US diplomat also warned that the American public must be “sober” about the possibility of war breaking out. Tillerson said the risk of such a war on the Korean Peninsula “continues to grow”. This was echoed by President Trump a day later ... US leaders are intensifying the conditioning of the American public to accept use of the military option, which they have been threatening for the past year in a pre-emptive attack on North Korea.

The Vancouver summit also called for proactive interdiction of international ships ... That raises the danger of the US and its allies interfering with Russian and Chinese vessels ...

These reprehensible developments are a reflection of the increasingly Orwellian worldview held by Washington and its partners, whereby “war is presented as peace” and “peace is perceived as war”.

Just this week, North and South Korea held a third round of peace negotiations ... the quickening pace of peace overtures this month should be welcomed and encouraged. Russia, China and the UN have indeed endorsed the bilateral Korean exchange. ...

Nevertheless, as the Vancouver summit this week shows, the US and its NATO allies appear to be doing everything to torpedo the inter-Korean dialogue. Issuing ultimatums and warning of “military options” seems intended to blow up the delicate dynamic towards confidence and trust. ...

First, there was the report: “Military quietly prepares for a last resort: War with North Korea”. The NY Times actually reported extensive Pentagon plans for a preemptive air assault on North Korea involving a “deep attack” manned by 82nd Airborne paratroopers and special forces. The paper spun the provocative war plans as a “last resort”. In other words, war is sold here as peace. ...

who is trying to wreck the Olympic Games ... For months, Western media have been warning that North Korea was intending to carry out some kind of sabotage. Now, it looks like the sabotage is actually coming from the US ...

The second report in the NY Times had the telling headline: “Olympic détente upends US strategy on North Korea”. So ... A peaceful development of détente between two adversaries is somehow presented as a pernicious “upending of US strategy on North Korea”. In other words, peace is sold here as war. ... “This latest gesture of unity, the most dramatic in a decade, could add to fears in Washington that Pyongyang is making progress on a more far-reaching agenda.”... “White House officials warn that the ultimate goal of [North Korean leader] Mr Kim is to evict American troops from the Korean Peninsula and to reunify the two Koreas under a single flag.” ... Only in a perverse Orwellian worldview would an initiative to calm tensions and build peaceful relations be construed as something to “fear” and be opposed to. Only in a perverse Orwellian worldview would peaceful dialogue provoke plans for pre-emptive war.