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President Moon Jae-in

South Korean President Moon Jae-in, North Korean Workers' Party Central Committee Vice Chairman Kim Yong-chol and White House advisor Ivanka Trump sat together in the same section during the closing ceremony of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, which was held at the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium in Gangwon Province on the evening of Feb. 25.

At 8 pm, Moon entered the VIP section of the stadium along with International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, following a child carrying a snow globe showing scenes from the Olympics, including the mountains and fields of Gangwon Province and the Olympic stadiums. After shaking hands with Trump and Kim Yong-chol, who had already arrived at the VIP section, Moon waved to the people in the stands.

The VIP section, which had seats for 60 people, was centered on Moon and his wife Kim Jung-sook, with Trump sitting next to the first lady and Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong in the same row. Kim Yong-chol was sitting one row behind them. Trump was positioned at a diagonal from Kim Yong-chol, with just one person between them. Blue House spokesperson Kim Eui-kyum reported that no greetings were exchanged by the North Korean and American delegations.

President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with North Korean Workers‘ Party Central Committee Vice Chairman Kim Yong-chol at the Pyeongchang Olympics closing ceremony on Feb. 25 while Ivanka Trump looks on. (Blue House Photo Pool)

Moon, his wife, Trump and Kim Yong-chol all stood up and applauded when South Korean athletes entered the arena under the Taegeukgi (the South Korean flag) and when North Korean athletes entered under the North Korean flag and the Unification Flag. Kim Yong-chol was the first to leave the section, at 9:55 pm, toward the end of the closing ceremony, heading to his accommodations in Seoul. After the closing ceremony, Trump, Moon and his wife met with the boy group Exo and the singer CL, who performed in the ceremony, at Trump’s request. Trump said it was incredible to have a chance to meet the performers and explained that her children were big fans. Exo members presented Trump with a scented candle and said they wanted to invite her to a performance in the US.

Prior to attending the closing ceremony, Trump spent the day focused on the Olympics and cheering US athletes taking part in the men’s bobsleigh event at the Alpensia Sliding Centre. "I'm so excited to be here. It's just so incredibly inspiring," she said. The previous day, Trump watched the men’s snowboard big air finals at the Alpensia Ski Jumping Centre with Kim Jung-sook and then cheered on the US men’s curling team and skaters in the mass start speedskating event. After holding a closed-door meeting with Moon that lasted for over 40 minutes and dining with him at the Blue House immediately after arriving in South Korea on Feb. 23, Trump stayed mainly at Olympic sites.

President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with USFK Commander General Vincent Brooks at the Pyeongchang Olympics closing ceremony on Feb. 25. (Blue House Photo Pool)

Meanwhile, on the morning of Feb. 25, Kim Yong-chol arrived in South Korea via the customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) office at Dora Mountain in Paju, Gyeonggi Province. Kim and the rest of the North Korean delegation crossed the military demarcation line on the Gyeongui Line overland route at 9:49 am and arrived at the CIQ at 10:11 am. The delegation was greeted by Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung, representing the South Korean government.

Kim passed by reporters without responding to their questions about how it felt to visit South Korea or about the sinking of the Cheonan naval vessel. The members of the delegation immediately got into waiting vehicles that drove them to their hotel, the Sheraton Grande Walkerhill Hotel in the Gwangjang neighborhood of Seoul’s Gwangjin District. After unloading their luggage, the delegation was driven to Deokso Station in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, where it boarded the 3:22 pm high-speed train on the Seoul-Gangneung line bound for Jinbu Station, near the site of the Pyeongchang Olympics.

By Seong Yeon-cheol and Kim Ji-eun, staff reporters

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