DPRK cancels joint cultural event with S.Korea before Winter Olympics

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) cancelled the joint cultural event with South Korea set to be held days before the 2018 Winter Olympics, according to Seoul's unification ministry on Tuesday.

The Olympic rings are displayed at the Main Press Center for the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Jan. 23, 2018. [Photo: AP/Ahn Young-joon]

The DRPK sent a notice at about 10:10 p.m. local time on Monday (1310 GMT) via the restored inter-Korean hotline of direct dialogue, saying the inter-Korean joint cultural event, which the two Koreas had agreed to hold on Feb. 4 at Mount Kumgang, will be called off.

South Korea and the DPRK agreed upon the cultural event during the senior-level inter-Korean talks that were held on Jan. 17 at the truce village of Panmunjom.

Pyongyang agreed to send its athletes, cheerleaders and artists to the 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games slated to run from February to March in South Korea's east county of PyeongChang.

Members of North Korea's Moranbong band sing and dance during a joint performance with the State Merited Chorus in Pyongyang, North Korea, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015. The performance was part of the 70th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party.[File Photo: IC]

The DPRK cited negative South Korean media reports on the DPRK's participation in the Winter Olympics as a key reason for the abrupt cancellation of the joint culture festival.

Conservative South Korean media outlets called the PyeongChang Olympics as the Pyongyang Olympics to criticize the Moon Jae-in government's peace efforts.

The two Koreas agreed to march together under a unified flag at the opening and closing ceremonies of the Winter Olympics and field a joint women's ice hockey team, the first historic Olympic team between the DPRK and South Korea.

Conservative South Korean media organizations opposed the joint team and the unified flag as they claimed it can help the DPRK's propaganda efforts.

The opposition was led by the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, which had favored the DPRK's participation in the South Korea-hosted sports event under the presidency of impeached leader Park Geun-hye.