Olympics 'Convenient' Event For Inter-Korean Dialogue

(ATR) The script could not be more perfect. The wounded 2018 Olympic Games receives a boost from an unlikely source transcending the politics commonly associated with staging the event.

North Korea boycotted the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul despite intense lobbying behind the scenes but have reversed course for the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang. During the annual New Year’s speech, North Korea leader Jong Un Kim stated his desire to send a delegation to PyeongChang, leading to a flurry of talks to solidify a delegation.

The actual composition of the delegation will have to be negotiated by the IOC and relevant parties, but interest in the Games has been reinvigorated. Instead of discussing low ticket sales or the looming question of Russian participation, the narrative in the final weeks before the Games has shifted to North Korea’s participation.

Likewise, in a landscape where the media narrative surrounding many political decisions gets framed in terms of winning and losing, North Korea attending the 2018 Olympics has been declared a resounding win, by some in the broader Olympic Movement.

"On a day like today, when two countries divided by war and politics can come together if only for one Games, [working with Olympic bids is] worth it," Terrence Burns, an Olympic bid consultant who worked on the PyeongChang 2018 bid, wrote on social media.

Alan Abrahamson, in a column on his website 3 Wire Sports, went a step further writing, "this is why this breakthrough marks precisely the sort of action that underscores why the Olympic movement matters, why it still holds the unique potential to move the world forward in significant if not history-making ways".

Did the Olympics motivate the two Koreas, without significant dialogue since 2015, to generate the political will necessary to ease escalating tensions? Experts tell Around the Rings the answer is not as optimistic as some narratives, and certainly more nuanced.

IOC member Richard Pound understands the significance of North Korea attending the 2018 Winter Olympics more than most. He was the chair of the 1988 IOC Coordination Commission for the Seoul Games. He later wrote a book, Five Rings Over Korea, about the negotiations to stage a successful Olympics as South Korea transitioned to democracy, and attempts to get North Korea to attend.

Pound says North Korea attending the Games must be considered a "step forward" in a very different landscape from 1988. Then, the IOC took the lead in negotiations under President Samaranch, at some point to South Korea’s exasperation. Present day offers a different situation, so the IOC entered discussions "somewhat late," according to Pound.

"[The IOC] is stepping in at the level of details, deciding who is eligible, will there be joint teams, will there be joint parade, and all that sort," Pound said to ATR. "But it hasn’t been leading this. It has issued statements supporting and encouraging participation which is good and should do, but the political negotiations are being led by the South Korean government."

The IOC’s own statements reflect that idea. A spokesperson said on Jan. 8 the IOC "[needs] the political commitment from all parties concerned to make such a [North Korean] participation possible".

Political will for attending the Olympics could be seen as an easy accomplishment given the set date for the international event, Charles Armstrong, who teaches Korean Studies as a History Professor at Columbia University, says to ATR. South Korean President Jae In Moon had been signaling a desire to resume dialogue with North Korea since taking office in May 2017. Meanwhile, Kim has boasted about completing the North Korean nuclear weapons program, a key point of leverage for leverage in future talks.

The 2018 Olympics were awarded in 2011, and the coalescing of both sides' positions means the Games are now a "convenient point of entry" for dialogue.

"South Korea has practiced sports diplomacy for a long time going back to the 1980's and they have wanted to get North Korean cooperation for these Olympics from the beginning," Armstrong says. "This was North Korea’s way of reaching out and South Korea’s way of [doing] something with the North that was relatively acceptable with the U.S."

North Korea’s agreement for face to face talks has elicited a range of reactions in the United States. For example, President Donald Trump has taken credit for talks, while General Vincent Brooks, commander of U.S. forces in Korea, said at a university in Seoul that talks could be seen as a way to divide the U.S. and South Korea.

Trump’s administration has worked hard to enforce sanctions on North Korea, and these Olympic talks are a convenient way for Pyongyang to extract concessions from Moon’s administration, Sung Yoon Lee, a Korean-Studies Professor at Tufts University says.

"It is good business and good politics for all concerned including the IOC, South Korea, North Korea, the South Korean public, and journalists that will gather in South Korea," Lee said. "I’m sure Kim had many months, if not years, to plan on the timing of de-escalation, and the timing is perfect after a triumphant year showcasing his weapons capabilities, it only makes sense for North Korea to do this.

"Trump has taken credit for North Korea’s outreach and Moon has taken credit for himself. Neither deserves any credit because [this] was preordained."

Even though the Olympics cannot take all the credit for resumption of dialogue on the Korean Peninusla, Pound says North Korea’s desire to participate shows the Games "have indeed become universal".

IOC President Thomas Bach acknowledging the political realities when calling for a participation summit said dialogue is "great step forward in the Olympic spirit and in the spirit of the Olympic Truce Resolution."

Constantinos Filis, director of the International Olympic Truce Center, a non-government organization that works to uphold the bi-ennial UN resolution, may understand the complexity of situation as well as political experts. In a statement emailed to ATR Filis applauded the steps taken so far, especially the halting of joint military drills by the U.S. and South Korea during the Olympics. Still, reality crept in.

"[Talks] certainly won’t settle all their differences, and nor will the talks impact the development of Pyongyang’s nuclear program," Filis said. "But they will enable the two sides to come closer together, de-escalate the tensions between them – at least for a short time."

Written by Aaron Bauer

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