SEOUL, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- South Korea on Monday welcomed the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (
Baik Tae-hyun, Seoul's unification ministry spokesman, told a press briefing that the government hailed the visit by the DPRK's high-ranking delegation to South Korea, saying it will provide necessary accommodations and guarantee security during their stay. The DPRK notified South Korea Sunday night of its decision to send the delegation, led by Kim Yong-nam, president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, from Friday to Sunday. The DPRK delegation will include three delegates and 18 supporting officials. Who will be the three delegates was not known yet. The 23rd Winter Olympics will start from Friday at South Korea's eastern county of PyeongChang. Baik said the South Korean government will prepare to let the DPRK delegation attend the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics as well as other competitions and events, while preparing to make it possible for high-ranking officials from the two Koreas to hold talks. The spokesman expressed South Korea's anticipation that the DPRK delegation's visit to South Korea can make the PyeongChang Winter Olympics a successful "peace Olympic" while restoring inter-Korean relations and establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula. Meanwhile, the DPRK's art troupe planned to visit South Korea by sea for performances during the Winter Olympic period, Baik said. The DPRK notified South Korea of its plan to send the 140-member Samjiyon orchestra on the Mangyongbong-92 ferry Tuesday and use the ferry as an accommodation for the art troupe, the spokesman said. The Samjiyon orchestra will hold two concerts, including one in Gangneung, an eastern city near PyeongChang, on Thursday and the other in the capital Seoul on Sunday. During the high-level, inter-Korean talks in January, the DPRK agreed to dispatch its athletes, a cheering squad and an art troupe to the Winter Olympics.