By Sohn JiAe
Photos = Cheong Wa Dae

President Moon Jae-in held talks with Governor General of Canada Julie Payette at Cheong Wa Dae on Feb. 7. The Canadian representative of the Crown is on her way to attend the Opening Ceremony of the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games slated for Feb. 9.

President Moon acknowledged that Canada, the host country of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and a leader in winter sports, has provided active support for the successful hosting of the PyeongChang Games with a squad of more than 280 athletes and support staff.

Mentioning the Canada-born Sarah Murray, the head coach of the joint North-South Korean women’s ice hockey team, and Jim Paek, the coach of the national men’s ice hockey team, President Moon stressed that the two nations have built bilateral ties across sports.

Governor General Payette hoped for the success of the PyeongChang Olympic Games, saying that, “I’ve identified for several past weeks that Olympic facilities and sporting conditions seem to be complete. The upcoming PyeongChang Olympic Games will hopefully be a good chance to expose various aspects of this host country to the world.”



President Moon also expressed his gratitude for the Canadian government’s contribution toward sending a balanced message on the need for sanctions and pressure against North Korea and inter-Korean dialogue to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula. “Canada is one of three countries, along with the U.S. and Britain, that sent troops during the Korea War (1950-1953) and is a trustworthy ally that agreed to resolve Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons problems in a peaceful manner,” he said.

As a former astronaut, the Canadian governor general said, “You can see from space that the peninsula floating over the blue sea doesn’t seem divided, but adjoined as one land.”

jiae5853@korea.kr