By Kim Bo-eun, Park Si-soo



South and North Koreas agreed that their athletes will make a joint entrance at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics under a white "unification flag" showing the Korean Peninsula in blue, a joint press statement released by Seoul's unification ministry said on Wednesday.



The two Koreas also agreed to field a united women's ice hockey team, the statement said.



The agreement was reached in the latest inter-Korean talks at the Panmunjeom Truce Village to discuss details of the North's participation in the Olympics.



North Korea will send a delegation of about 550, including 230 cheerleaders, 140 artists and 30 taekwondo players for a demonstration, the statement said.



The delegation is scheduled to begin arriving in South Korea on Jan. 25. They will use a western land route that leads to the now-shuttered joint industrial complex in the North Korean border city of Gaeseong.



The two Koreas also agreed to hold a joint cultural event at Mount. Kumgang in the North before the opening ceremony and to conduct a joint training among ski athletes at Masikryong Ski Resort in the North.



The outcome of Wednesday's talks is expected to be discussed at the International Olympic Committee's meeting with officials from the Koreas scheduled for Saturday in Lausanne, Switzerland.



"Regarding the North's participation in the Paralympics, the Koreas will discuss the matter with the International Paralympic Committee to finalize it. Pyongyang will also consult with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) about its Olympics participation," ministry spokesman Baik Tae-hyun said.



The Paralympics will be held March 9 to 18, after the Olympics from Feb. 9 to 25.



The meeting, led by the Vice Minister Chun Hae-sung and North Korea's Jon Jong-su, vice chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea, began at 10 a.m. at the Peace House on the southern side of the Military Demarcation Line.



Also representing the South were officials from the Prime Minister's Office and PyeongChang Olympics organizing committee.



Other delegates from the North included a sports ministry official and a Korean Central News Agency reporter.



Meanwhile, covering the costs for the delegation has garnered attention as Pyongyang has been placed under U.N. Security Council sanctions which ban the provision of cash to the regime.



In a ministerial-level meeting last week, the South agreed to "provide necessary assistance for delegates from the North."



Based on previous cases, the South will likely be able to cover costs for the North Korean delegation indirectly, through the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund.



The IOC has also expressed its intention to provide financial assistance, within the boundaries set by the UNSC resolutions.



It remains to be seen whether the South will pay the costs only for athletes, or whether it will also cover high-level officials, a cheering squad, performance troupe and taekwondo demonstration team.



The costs, if covered for the entire delegation, will likely be sizable as the North has stated it will send a 140-member orchestral music troupe and 230-member cheering squad.



