IOC to Further Accompany South-North Korean Political Dialogue - IOC President

GENEVA (Sputnik) - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will further keep track of the political dialogue between Seoul and Pyongyang, IOC President Thomas Bach said Saturday.

"We will continue to accompany this political dialogue through sport, by helping athletes to prepare for and compete in future editions of the Olympic Games," Bach said, as quoted in an IOC statement, at the meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

IOC delegation's visit to Pyongyang began on Thursday and finished on Saturday. During the visit, Bach met with senior North Korean officials and visited several sporting facilities.

The North Korean side reiterated its commitment to competing in the Tokyo 2020 Games and the Beijing 2022 Games, according to the IOC statement. Kim praised Bach and the IOC for helping with mediation and getting North Korea to join this year's Winter Olympics in South Korea.

On Thursday, South and North Korea have agreed to hold an inter-Korean summit on April 27 in the border village of Panmunjom. The meeting will take place ahead of an expected meeting between US President Donald Trump and Kim in May.

READ MORE: DPRK Media Reportedly Ignores Kim's Calls for Nuke-Free N Korea

In 2017, the situation on the Korean peninsula escalated due to North Korea’s nuclear test and repeated ballistic missile launches, which have further stoked tensions between Washington and Pyongyang.

The situation significantly de-escalated before the Winter Olympics that were recently held in South Korea’s Pyeongchang with North Korean athletes participating in the Games.

The North Korean team united with the team of its southern neighbor, marching under the Korean Unification Flag during the opening ceremony, while also forming a single women's ice hockey team.