American Vice-President Mike Pence will be in Pyeongchang to head the U.S. delegation
for the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics.
However, he brings a stern message to North Korea regardless of its peaceful participation
at the Games... that Washington will not back down on pressuring the regime.
Kwon Jang-ho tells us more.
After a closed-door meeting with President Donald Trump, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence
set off on a five-day trip to Japan and South Korea.
He'll arrive in Tokyo on Tuesday, where he'll meet with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe the following
day -- they're expected to talk about North Korea, and what more they can do to up the
pressure on the regime.
He'll then set off to Korea on Thursday... in time for Friday's opening ceremony of the
PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
However, the White House has stressed that his role in Pyeongchang will not be just ceremonial.
A White House official on Monday said "the vice president will take every chance to highlight
the reality of what is happening in North Korea."
Another White House aide said Pence will make sure that North Korea does not 'hijack' the
sporting event for its own propaganda purposes.
This point will be further driven home as Pence will be accompanied at the opening ceremony
by Fred Warmbier, the father of Otto Warmbier, the U.S. student who died last year shortly
after being released from North Korean captivity.
The Warmbier family were also special guests at Trump's State of the Union address last
week, where the President attacked North Korea's human rights abuses.
Pence will meet with President Moon Jae-in during his visit, but there will also be much
attention on whether there will be any interaction with North Korean officials.
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who spoke with the Vice President before he left,
said on Monday that they will see what happens.
Kwon Jang-ho, Arirang News.
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