The Japanese government "decided to allow North Korean athletes and officials to enter the country to take part in the 2017 Sapporo Asian Winter Games in northern Japan later this month despite Japan's ongoing entry ban on North Korean citizens, government sources said Sunday," according to KYODO. As in the past, Tokyo will "treat the athletes as an exception to its punitive measure taken as part of its sanctions in response to Pyongyang's nuclear tests and rocket launches." The government will ask the attending officials to submit identification and documents with records of personal backgrounds before issuing entry permissions to "confirm that the delegate would not include officials from the ruling Workers' Party and military personnel," the sources said. About 20 people, including seven participants in short-track speed skating and figure skating, have applied for entry permits, according to the sources and the organizing committee of the sports event. The North Korean team is expected to arrive in Sapporo on Hokkaido via China "a few days before" the int'l sports event starts on Feb. 19 (KYODO, 2/6).
