There was a political touch to the overtly political 2018 Winter Olympics that closed on Sunday night very much as they began, with humanity’s finest athletes marching exuberantly across the world stage as three nations with decades of war and suspicion among them shared a VIP box and a potential path away from conflict.
Senior North Korean official Kim Yong Chol, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and U.S. presidential adviser and first daughter Ivanka Trump sat in two rows of seats behind the Olympic rings, meant to represent a competition of peace and international unity. In close proximity though with no apparent communication between Ms. Trump and Mr. Kim they watched an exuberant, elaborate show that concluded the Pyeongchang Games.
Even as dancers told cultural stories to music before a huge crowd, South Korea’s presidential office released a brief statement saying that Pyongyang had expressed willingness to hold talks with Washington.
Better US and Korean ties in tandem
The North has "ample intentions of holding talks with the United States," according to the office.
In a meeting with the South Korean President at an undisclosed location in Pyeongchang, the North’'s delegation also said developments in relations between the two Koreas and those between North Korea and the United States should go hand in hand, said the Blue House in a statement.
