How the DPRK media talked about the Olympics opening ceremony

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Like most other media outlets, media from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) focused its attention on the presence of Kim Yo Jong – the sister of DPRK leader Kim Jong Un – at PyeongChang Olympics opening ceremony on Friday.

The official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in a report that Kim Yo Jong "took the platform of the opening ceremony" along with Republic of Korea (ROK) President Moon Jae-in.

Kim Yong Nam, president of the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly, and his delegation held a brief meeting with Moon when attending the ceremony, the report said.

The report also highlighted the joint entry by the two teams of the DPRK and the ROK into the stadium.

"Spectators broke into cheers and applause as players of the north and the south of Korea entered the stadium, led by the flag of the Korean Peninsula amid the playing of the song 'Arirang,'" wrote the KCNA.

"Kim Yong Nam, Kim Yo Jong and President Moon Jae-in and his wife all stood up to wave to the players of the north and the south," it said.

CCTV Photo

"Arirang" is a Korean folk song that dates back to before the peninsula was divided in 1945.

DPRK state television has yet to report on the opening ceremony, but the official daily Rodong Sinmun reported the news on its front page Saturday.

The participation of the DPRK's high-level delegation has drawn worldwide attention as it signaled the thawing of inter-Korean relations and a rapprochement between Pyongyang and Seoul.

The official DPRK media also criticized US Vice President Pence for raising pressure on the DPRK before the opening ceremony. They slammed the US for attempting to dampen the atmosphere of improving relations between the DPRK and the ROK.

The media reported that "the one who seeks to undermine the Olympic and North-South relations, will draw condemnation from the international community."

"DPRK is prepared for a variety of responses to whether military strikes or sanctions from US," reported DPRK media.

The delegation arrived on a special plane Friday from Pyongyang to Incheon, in the first high-level interactions between the two sides of the Korean Peninsula in over a decade.

Source(s): Xinhua News Agency