SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea is backing the creation of a joint fan group to support its team and North Korea at next year’s World Cup.

Kim Choong-whan, a ruling party lawmaker leading a bipartisan delegation on a South Africa trip, said Thursday that lawmakers will pass a resolution on the formation of a joint fan group next month, according to Yonhap news agency.
“We need to take this as an opportunity to promote inter-Korean reconciliation and cooperation,” Yonhap quoted Kim as saying.
“It would be desirable for the South Korean government to finance the travel arrangements for about 300 North Korean cheerers to South Africa.”
Both South and North Korea have already qualified for South Africa 2010, marking the first time the fractious neighbors will play at the same World Cup.
Previously, athletes from North and South Korea have marched together during the opening ceremonies of the Olympics and Asian Games, but competed separately.
The 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, leaving the two countries still technically at war. Bilateral ties began deteriorating when a pro-U.S. conservative government took office early last year with a tougher stance on the North. But their ties showed signs of improvement in recent weeks as the North took conciliatory steps toward Seoul.