IOC president plans to visit North Korea: report

by Mallory Shelbourne - 02/12/18 9:18 AM ET

The head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will travel to North Korea after the Winter Games in South Korea conclude, Reuters reported on Monday.

In an interview with the news outlet, IOC President Thomas Bach said he will make the trip upon an invitation from North Korea.

“All the parties concerned have welcomed this invitation to North Korea,” Bach told the news outlet. “We are talking about this convenient date in order to continue the dialogue on the sports side. We will see when this is going to happen.”

The Pyeongchang Winter Olympics end on Feb. 25.

{mosads}North and South Korean athletes marched together during the opening ceremony of the games, a move that followed heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula over Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions.

Bach in the interview said the “dialogue will continue” for the IOC, which reportedly played a part in an agreement with the two countries over the North being involved in the Olympic games.

“We can set the symbols, we can show that it is worthwhile sitting down together discussing, negotiating, and that then you can come to a good result,” the IOC president told Reuters.

North Korea also reportedly invited its southern neighbor to discussions in Pyongyang for the first time in more than 10 years.