Nov. 27 (UPI) -- The president of North Korea's Olympic committee was granted permission to travel to Japan to participate in the Association of National Olympic Committees General Assembly in Tokyo. He arrived in Tokyo late Tuesday.
Earlier, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters at a regular press briefing North Korean official Kim Il Guk will be taking part in the meeting in Japan, South Korean news service Seoul Pyongyang News reported Tuesday.
Permission has been granted so Kim may "participate in the meeting in Tokyo related to the Olympics," Suga said.
Japan is to host the 2020 Summer Olympics, and the most recent winter games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, played a pivotal role in easing tensions in the region following a year of ballistic missile tests.
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South Korea's Donga Ilbo reported Kim arrived in Tokyo late Tuesday. The general assembly is to take place Wednesday and Thursday.
An official with the Japanese police told Yonhap Kim left from Beijing on a flight that would touch down at Haneda Airport, the smaller of the two airports near Tokyo.
The General Federation of Korean Residents of Japan, or Chongryon, greeted Kim at the airport, according to the Donga.
At a press briefing on Monday, Suga said international sporting events ban discrimination, and that in the spirit of anti-discriminatory policy, Japan would "respond accordingly, on a case-by-case basis."
Japanese sanctions currently prohibit North Koreans from traveling to the country.
North Korea is using sporting events to draw attention to its athletes.
Pyongyang's athletes in Iran won gold, silver and bronze medals at the first CISM World Military Archery Championships in Tehran, according to KCNA last week.
North Korean athlete Kang Un Ju won the gold medal during a women's competition, and Pak Yong Won was awarded a silver medal in a men's competition.
