Can sport bridge the divide? A new bill seeks closer inter-Korean ties.

AI핵심 요약

• ·A new bill would ease travel and logistics for inter-Korean athletes and create a support center to facilitate more events, but experts doubt it will thaw the North's icy approach to the South.
• ·Close interactions between South and North Koreans are rare, though sports events can provide some opportunities for more personal engagement, as seen in the semifinal between the South's Suwon FC and North's Naegohyang Women's FC in the AFC Women’s Champions League last month.
• ·However, athletic events involving the two countries scarred by the 1950-53 Korean War could soon take place more often under a recently-introduced inter-Korean sports exchange bill.
• ·The bill, proposed by liberal Democratic Party Rep.
• ·Huh Young and 16 other lawmakers on April 27, aims to “contribute to peace and reunification on the Korean Peninsula by promoting sports exchanges and cooperation between South and North Korea.” The envisioned plan could make football matches between South and North Korean clubs more regular fixtures, ending the “once-in-a-decade” narrative that emerged ahead of the match between Suwon FC and Naegohyang FC in the AFC Women’s Champions League.