SEOUL - South Korea has rejected claims by North Korea
that it poisoned its players before last week's 2010 World Cup
qualifier in Seoul, as tensions mounted over the North's long-range
rocket launch on Sunday.
A statement carried by North Korea's official news agency KCNA
on Sunday called the alleged poisoning "a product of (South Korean
President) Lee Myung-bak group's moves for confrontation with the
DPRK (North Korea) and a deliberate behaviour bred by the unsavoury
forces instigated by it."
It also accused the match's Omani referee of bias, adding: "The
match thus turned into a theatre of plot-breeding and
swindling."
In Wednesday's Group Two qualifier, South Korea scored with
three minutes remaining to beat the North 1-0, with the visitors
furious that Jong Tae-se's second-half header, which appeared to
have crossed the line, was ruled out by the referee.
Kim Joo-sung, (South) Korean Football Association (KFA)
international affairs chief, said the accusations were politically
motivated and baseless.
"The statement sets a high political tone, not about the sport
itself. There's no need to respond to it," Kim was quoted as saying
by South Korean news agency Yonhap on Monday.
"If an accident happens during training or transit, and it
affects the match, the host country should take responsibility for
the accident.
"But matters related to hotels or the food are the
responsibility of the visiting team."
The North Korean statement came amid heightened tensions on the
Korean peninsula surrounding Sunday's launch of a long-range
rocket, which triggered international outrage and prompted the U.N.
security Council to call an emergency meeting.
South Korean Foreign Minister Yoo Myung-hwan said the launch was
a "provocative act" that threatened peace and stability.
KFA president Cho Chung-yun, who is also a vice-president for
soccer's world governing body FIFA, rejected the North's demands
for an apology over the alleged poisoning and said no further
action was needed.
"North Korea decided on everything, including accommodation, and
we were never involved in the process," local media quoted him as
saying. "It's not a matter to investigate."
South Korea lead World Cup qualifying Group Two on 11 points,
followed by North Korea and Saudi Arabia on 10 points. The top two
automatically qualify for South Africa 2010.
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