North Korea canceled a key joint cultural event with South Korea on Monday night that would have marked the start of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, highlighting the fragile relationship between the two countries despite recent talks.
In a letter to Seoul’s Unification Ministry, North Korea said it had no choice but to cancel the event, alleging South Korean media of smearing the North’s “sincere” efforts at the Olympics. The North also said South Korea’s media was taking issue with another unspecified event in North Korea, according to a Ministry press release.
The event, sponsored by the ministry, was supposed to take place at the North’s Diamond Mountain on Feb. 4, the week of the Olympics opening ceremonies.
“It is greatly regrettable that an event agreed by the South and North will not be held due to North Korea’s unilateral notification,” the ministry said in an unofficial translation of the press release.
The North’s cancellation comes after several instances of North Korea showing cooperation with its southern neighbor ahead of the upcoming games.
Earlier this month, it was announced that North and South Korean athletes would march together in the Winter Olympics opening ceremony, and last week, North Korea announced a call for reunification.
This is not the first time North Korea has pulled out from an event at the last minute. A trip by North Korean performing artists to the South was initially stopped and delayed by the North Korean government earlier this month, but ultimately took place.
The 2018 Winter Olympic Games in South Korea are approaching after a year of heightened tensions on the Peninsula amid development of North Korea’s nuclear program. The North Korean government conducted several missile tests last year prompting strong rhetoric between President Donald Trump and North Korean Dictator Kim Jong-un and resulting in new U.N. sanctions on North Korea.
The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony is scheduled for Feb. 9.
