[Courtesy of World Economic Forum]
Organizers of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos have revoked an invitation to a delegation from North Korea following the country’s nuclear test last week. .
Earlier in the day, the Forum announced that North Korea’s foreign minister Ri Su Yong would be going to the Swiss resort town of Davos for the gathering of the world's business and political elite from Jan. 20-23. North Korea last sent a delegation to the forum in 1998.
Philipp Roesler, a member of the Forum's managing board later told a news conference in Geneva, they had invited North Korea in the autumn "because at the time there had been some convincing encouraging signals out of the DPRK that there may be an opportunity for international global dialogue."
"But we have seen what has happened last week, the nuclear test ... so there will be no opportunity for the international global dialogue in the spirit of the World Economic Forum ... Therefore we could not maintain our invitation to the DPRK."
The WEF added that a delegation would still be welcome in the future if North Korea "acts as a responsible and responsive member of the international community." It did not elaborate.
The 46th annual WEF meeting is expected to draw more than 2,500 participants from over 100 countries under the theme "Mastering the Fourth Industrial Revolution."
By Alex Lee
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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