North Korea won Pyeongchang political gold, but what's next?
Posted February 12, 2018 6:00 am
PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) - North Korea won the political gold medal at Pyeongchang just by showing up. But what's next?
Kim Jong Un scored badly needed publicity points by sending his little sister to the games and extending an invitation to South Korean President Moon Jae-in to come to Pyongyang.
That's the low-hanging fruit.
Actually parlaying photo ops and handshakes into a summit - or a lasting, positive change in the regional security situation - is quite another matter.
South Koran President Moon Jae-in, third from left, talks with Kim Yo Jong, second from left, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's sister, as they watch a performance of North Korea's Samjiyon Orchestra at National Theater in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, Feb. 11, 2018. A rare invitation to Pyongyang for South Korea's president marked Day Two of the North Korean Kim dynasty's southern road tour, part of an accelerating diplomatic thaw that included some Korean liquor over lunch and the shared joy of watching a "unified" Korea team play hockey at the Olympics. At left is North Korea's nominal head of state Kim Yong Nam. (Bee Jae-man/Yonhap via AP)
The Associated Press
In this Feb. 7, 2018 photo, North Korean cheering squads wave upon their arrival at the Korean-transit office near the Demilitarized Zone in Paju, South Korea. A North Korean delegation, including members of a state-trained cheering group, arrived in South Korea on Wednesday for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon. File)
The Associated Press
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