(Reuters) - The organisers of July's Swimming World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea and the world swimming body FINA have appealed to North Korea to participate in order to to promote peace on the peninsula. Nuclear-armed North Korea's participation is in doubt after it raised tensions by test-firing rockets and at least one short-range missile this month. "They're sincerely expecting North Korea's participation ... North Korea's presence is crucial for the success of this event as the motto of the competition is 'Dive into Peace'. FINA executive director Cornel Marculescu said correspondence was being exchanged in the hope of securing North Korea's presence. The two countries agreed to field joint teams in various sports in February and have also expressed interest in jointly hosting the 2023 women's soccer World Cup.

Source: The Star May 23, 2019 16:41 UTC