Korea

A South Korean violinist has long dreamed of bringing together North and South Koreans musicians for a musical reunification. He almost made it happen.

Ji Seong-ho, 35, a North Korean defector who appeared at President Trump’s State of the Union address this week, is from Hoeryong, near the border with China. He told Reuters last year about the wooden crutches that he left North Korea with in 2006.

They also agreed to form a unified women’s ice hockey team and the South said it will send its skiers to the Masikryong ski resort in the North for joint training with North Korean skiers ahead of the Games.

After months of giving South Korea the cold shoulder, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said in his New Year’s speech that he was willing to send a delegation to the 2018 Olympics in the south.

The US military is closing its Yongsan military base in the South Korean capital. For people who grew up around the base, it was where they learned about American music, culture and food. But it’s also leaving behind environmental problems.