Winter Olympics Begin In South Korea

She was a guest of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, not pictured.

Pence avoided public criticism of Moon, congratulating South Korea on hosting the Olympics and pledging continued support in addressing the North’s nuclear threat. It will be held at the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium in the sleepy mountain town of Hoenggye, located in the Gangwon province of Pyeongchang county. Other countries followed in alphabetical order, based the Korean alphabet.

They stood a few rows apart in the Olympic stadium tonight, again shaking hands during a moving highlight of the ceremony when South and North Korea marched together under one flag and the single title of Korea.

Pence said his team had not requested a meeting, but that if it did happen, he would continue his message that North Korea must entirely abandon its nuclear and ballistic missile efforts and will remain under pressure until it does so.

Kim Yo Jong and her delegation were greeted by government officials, including Unification Minister Cho Myong-gyon, before boarding a bullet train to Pyeongchang. But while many nations wore long trousers and thick jackets, the delegation from Bermuda wore shorts, lead by athlete Tucker Murphy who is participating in cross-country skiing at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

USA vice president Mike Pence sat a row ahead of Ms Kim and the North’s nominal head of state, Kim Yong Nam, as they watched the games begin – officials from two nations that many worry are on the brink of nuclear conflict.

Canada-based Ng will compete in the giant slalom and slalom in the alpine events, the first time Hong Kong has sent an athlete in the discipline after being represented exclusively by speed skaters at the four previous Winter Olympics.

The Olympics have provided some respite from years of tense relations between Seoul and Pyongyang, though just hours before the ceremony hundreds of anti-North Korean protesters scuffled with riot police outside the stadium, burning North Korean flags and pictures of its leader, Kim Jong Un. According to the BBC, the opening ceremony was not broadcast in North Korea, with state television instead playing its typical range of patriotic songs.

The separate nations entered the arena with one flag, despite tensions between them, and was a symbolic moment of unity. -North Korea talks before leaving Monday on his six-day Asia trip.

“President Moon and I reflected last night on the need to do something fundamentally different”, Mr. Pence said.

Iran on Thursday had summoned South Korea’s ambassador over reports its athletes would not each receive a US$1,100 smartphone.