Japan considers Asian Games entry for North Korean athletes
About 150 North Korean competitors are expected at the event in Aichi Prefecture under Tokyo’s planned exception to sanctions-related entry restrictions.
- Japan is considering granting an entry exemption for a delegation of around 150 North Korean athletes to compete in the Asian Games.
- This move would be an exception to Japan's existing sanctions, which generally bar North Korean nationals from entering the country.
- The Japanese government's rationale is to separate international sporting events from political sanctions.
Around 150 North Korean athletes could compete at the Asian Games in Japan under an entry exemption now being prepared for their delegation, government officials said on Tuesday (September 8).
North Korea has advised the organising committee of plans to send a delegation.
The Games will take place in Aichi Prefecture from September 19 to October 4, with members of the delegation expected to compete across multiple events.
Japanese sanctions generally bar North Korean nationals from entering the country, but the government plans to treat the visiting delegation as an exception for the international competition.
“We need to separate the sanctions and the opportunity to participate in the event,” one official said.
The last such admission of North Korean athletes to Japan came during the final Asian round of women’s football qualifying for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
