UN General Assembly president makes solemn appeal for Olympic truce

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- President of the UN General Assembly Miroslav Lajcak on Friday made a solemn appeal for Olympic truce during the 2018 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games to be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

"As president of the General Assembly at its 72nd session, I solemnly appeal to all member states to demonstrate their commitment to the Olympic truce for the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic and Paralympic Games and to undertake concrete actions at the local, national, regional and world levels to promote and strengthen a culture of peace and harmony based on the spirit of the truce," Lajcak told a plenary session of the General Assembly, which took note of his appeal.

"I also call upon all warring parties of current armed conflicts around the world to boldly agree to true mutual cease-fires for the duration of the Olympic truce, thus providing an opportunity to settle disputes peacefully."

A General Assembly resolution adopted in November 2017 urges UN member states to observe an Olympic truce throughout the period from the seventh day before the start of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics until the seventh day following the end of the Winter Paralympic Games.

The Olympic movement aspires to contribute to a peaceful future for all humankind through the educational value of sport, in particular youth, said Lajcak. "The games will bring together athletes from all parts of the world in the greatest of international sports events as a means to promote peace, mutual understanding and goodwill among nations and peoples -- goals that are also part of the founding values of the United Nations."

The Olympic truce is a tradition that dates back to ancient Greece. The practice was revived in the 1990s. Enditem