A high-ranking North Korean defector says it is possible North Korea will not only send its athletes but also an art troupe to South Korea during the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. 

Thae Yong-ho, North Korea's former deputy ambassador to London who defected to South Korea in 2016, made the prediction in an interview with Seoul-based Yonhap News Wednesday.

Taking note of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s remark in his New Year's address that it is natural for the two Koreas to help each other for the Winter Games, Thae said Kim would not use such expression if he only intended to send athletes. 

He said Kim’s peace overture in his New Year's address masks a plan to break a multinational coordination among the concerned parties, including South Korea, the U.S. and China, over the North Korean nuclear program. He predicted Kim will use the PyeongChang Games as a means to achieve this strategic intention. 

In the televised New Year’s speech on Monday, Kim said he is willing to hold inter-Korean dialogue to discuss his country's participation in the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, calling for thawing inter-Korean relations.