North Korea Drops Out Of Tokyo Olympics Over Covid-19

North Korea’s sports ministry says the country will not be joining the Tokyo Olympics this year due to coronavirus concerns.

It will be the first time North Korea would miss a Summer Olympics since it boycotted Seoul in 1988 amid the Cold War and has dashed South Korean hopes that the Games would help revive stalled peace talks.

The North made its decision to pull out of Tokyo at a meeting of its Olympic committee and Sports Minister Kim Il Guk on March 25, according to a ministry statement on its website.

Tokyo Olympic organisers said they were aware of news reports on North Korea’s move and would work with other countries for the success of the Games.

The North’s withdrawal from Tokyo is also a setback for plans, agreed at a 2018 summit between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, to pursue a joint Korean bid to host the 2032 Games.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in had hoped the two countries, still technically at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, could field a combined team in Tokyo and rebuild momentum for improved relations.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula rose last month when the North resumed missile tests, although both sides said after the launches that they wanted to continue dialogue.