Make Winter Olympics a 'peace festival', urges Korea

Seoul, Nov 25 : South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha on Saturday asked for the international community's support to make the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games a peace festival.

"(South Korea) will make the PyeongChang Winter Olympics a peace festival as we made the Seoul (Summer) Olympics an opportunity to build peace about 30 years ago," Kang told reporters inside a bullet train bound for Gangneung in Gangwon province, an east coastal city near the host city of PyeongChang, from the capital Seoul, reports Xinhua. 

Kang said the peace festival could not be realised by South Korea alone, appealing for support and assistance from the international society.

The PyeongChang Winter Olympic is scheduled to kick off on February 9 next year, lasting until February 25. The Paralympic Games would follow from March 9 to March 18.

Kang was accompanied by almost 100 diplomats from foreign missions in Seoul and 15 foreign businessmen in the country to let them experience how to get to the Winter Olympic venue and inspect Olympic facilities.

"(We) hoped ambassadors (could) know how comfortable and enjoyable going to PyeongChang is. I hope a lot of tourists as well as athletes visit PyeongChang," said Kang.

The new line of the Korea Train Express (KTX) from Seoul to Gangneung is yet to open, but the country plans to get it operational in December, before the winter sports event kicks off.The high-speed rail will be linked to PyeongChang from the Incheon International Airport in the western port city of Incheon and The Gimpo International Airport.