Indonesia Invites North, South Korean Leaders to Asian Games Opening

Jakarta, MINA — Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has officially invited the North and South Korean leaders to attend the opening ceremony of the Asian Games 2018 in Jakarta next month, a government official said Sunday.

Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung told Kyodo News that official invitation letters were sent to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae In on Friday.

No word has yet to be received whether the invitations were accepted, Pramono said.

The Asian Games, arguably the world’s second-largest multisport event after the Olympics, will take place from Aug. 18 to Sept. 2, mainly in Jakarta.

At the opening ceremony, 100 delegates from each Korea are expected to march together under a single flag, while the Korean folk song “Arirang,” often considered the unofficial anthem of Korea, will likely be played at ceremonies whenever any joint team wins.

The Olympic Council of Asia has also approved a proposal from North Korea and South Korea on forming joint teams in women’s basketball, rowing and canoeing.

Indonesia is one of only a few countries with long-standing ties with Pyongyang, reaching back to the friendship between late Indonesian President Sukarno and the North’s founding leader Kim Il Sung, grandfather of the current leader.
(T/RS5/RS10

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)