Washington (CNN) Vice President Mike Pence will deride any notion of normalizing North Korea's relationships with the outside world while he leads the US delegation at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, this week.

During the games, Pence will "make clear that the maximum pressure of the Kim regime will only intensify," a White House official told reporters, adding that the vice president "will not allow the North Korean regime to highjack messaging of Olympics with propaganda."

"You'll see (Pence) highlight reality of what's happening in North Korea, despite propaganda tactics," the official said.

Axios reported that an aide made similar remarks earlier this week.

North and South Korea agreed to send a North Korean delegation to the Olympics. Both countries' athletes will march under a unified flag during the opening ceremony on Friday, athletes from the two countries will train together before the Olympics begin, and a joint North and South Korean women's ice hockey team will compete during the games.

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