South Korean basketball players are coming to North

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) – Dozens of South Korean basketball players arrived in North Korea's capital on Tuesday for a series of games of the two Koreas hope will foster a spirit of relaxation generated by the recent North-South summit meetings. 19659002] The 50 players arrived in Pyongyang on two military aircraft.

South Korean Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon headed the delegation, which included 20 South Korea reporters.

North Korea's deputy sports Minister, Won Kil U, the North's welcoming party.

The South Korean male and female basketball players are expected to play four matches with North Koreans on Wednesday and Thursday. It was not clear that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would have expected any of the games, but he did make a prominent appearance at a concert of the South Korean musicians in Pyongyang earlier this year.

A diplomatic outreach to the South that Kim announced during his annual New Year's speech. That led to the North's participation in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in February and two summits with South Korean President Moon Jae-in.

Kim has also had three summits with China's leader and US President Donald Trump last month in Singapore. 19659002] Cho, the South Korean unification minister, said he felt "deeply moved" on the subject of a relationship in the past few years.

Basketball diplomacy has something of a history in North Korea.

Basketball made international headlines from Pyongyang when training NBA player Dennis Rodman arranged for a game there in 2014 for Kim's birthday.

South Korea's Hyundai company built a basketball stadium in Pyongyang during the "Sunshine Period" of engagement between North and South and Joint game was played there in 2003.

Two rounds of inter-Korean basketball games were held before that, in 1999.