The event at Mount Kumgang in North Korea has been cancelled ©Getty Images

North Korea has cancelled a joint cultural event with South Korea planned for before Pyeongchang 2018, dealing a blow to the positive steps the two neighbours have made in the build-up to the Winter Olympics.

The event was due to be held at Mount Kumgang in the North on February 4 but the secluded state has now pulled the plug via a telegram.

According to Yonhap, North Korea has blamed what it perceives as "biased" media reports about the event.

The Unification Ministry in the South said its neighbour had also been upset about reports on a potential North Korean military parade on the eve of the Pyeongchang 2018 Opening Ceremony.

The parade will reportedly take place on February 8, the day before the Olympics begin in the South Korean county, to mark the 70th anniversary of the North Korean military.

This has been viewed by some as being a "show of strength".

North Korea, under its leader Kim Jong-un, had become increasingly isolated from the world in recent months due to its insistance on pursuing a nuclear programme and its missile launches.

Relations between North Korea and South Korea had improved, with initiatives such as the joint women's ice hockey team ©Getty Images
Relations between North Korea and South Korea had improved, with initiatives such as the joint women's ice hockey team ©Getty Images

Strained rhetoric between Kim and United States President Donald Trump led to security fears surrounding the Games in Pyeongchang.

However, Kim's New Year's Day announcement that his country wanted to compete at the Games led to a thawing in relations.

Following a meeting in Lausanne between both countries, the International Olympic Committee and Pyeongchang 2018, it was announced that 22 North Koreans will compete at the Games.

Both nations will also march under a unified Korean flag at the Opening Ceremony while the women's ice hockey team will feature players from both countries.

North Korea also agreed to send a taekwondo demonstration team and other performers to the Games.

While North Korea participating at Pyeongchang 2018 has been hailed as a way to ease political tension between the two countries, their appearance in South Korea has not been universally popular.

The Liberty Korea Party, the main opposition in South Korea, have been among the leading critics and have dubbed the Games as the "Pyongyang Olympics" after claiming the Government has put too much emphasis on North Korean athletes participating.