A Scripted Performance of Hostility and Vilification: The 1984 Inter-Korean Sports Talks at Panmunjom as Psychological Warfare

This study analyzes the 1984 Inter-Korean Sports Talks held in Panmunjom, departing from the existing perspectives of sports exchange or political negotiation, and instead views them as a kind of “scripted performance” staged by North and South Korea to achieve their respective political objectives. Although the talks began as a pretext for forming a unified team for the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, they were dominated by political issues such as the Rangoon bombing, the abduction of Shin Sang-ok and Choi Eun-hee, and mutual criticism of each other’s political systems, rather than the original agenda of sports. The delegations from both sides acted out a script provided by their national intelligence agencies, promoting the superiority of their respective systems, and the talks became a stage for psychological warfare. South Korea sought to highlight North Korea’s “evil nature” domestically and secure legitimacy and superiority internationally, while North Korea aimed to gain international recognition of its legitimacy and induce trilateral talks with the United States.