Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen will lead the U.S. delegation to the Winter Paralympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, next month, the White House announced on Tuesday.
Nielsen will join a handful of high-ranking administration officials who have cheered on American athletes at the winter games in Pyeongchang. Vice President Mike Pence led the U.S. delegation to the opening ceremonies of the Olympics earlier this month, and President Trump’s eldest daughter and senior adviser, Ivanka Trump, led a delegation to the closing ceremonies of the games.
The administration has used the location of this year’s winter Olympics and Paralympics to highlight the strength of the U.S. relationship with South Korea amid rising tensions with its northern neighbor. Although North Korean leaders and athletes attended the games alongside American officials, Pence and Ivanka Trump did not meet with anyone from the North Korean delegation.
Trump has recently reprised threats to use military force against North Korea if his administration’s campaign of “maximum pressure” against the regime fails to curtail its nuclear ambitions.
