Officials of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea sports contingent said nothing but willing to form a unified team with South Korea in Doha as their national flag was officially hoisted here on Tuesday.

Kim Jang-san, chef de mission of the DPR Korea delegation, declined to speak to media during the flag-raising ceremony at the Athletes' Village, but contingent members told Xinhua that they are willing to form a unified team with South Korean in the Doha Asian Games as well as the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008.

The DPRK and South Korea reached an agreement in Macao last November to form a unified team in both the Doha Asian Games and the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

However, neither of them came out to iterate the agreement so far in Doha.

Korean Olympic Committee (KOC) president Kim Jung-kil sent a telephone message to his DPRK counterpart Mun Jae-duk earlier Monday, saying that South Korea agreed to hold talks on forming a unified Olympic team, according to the South Korea's Yonhap News Agency.

It was reported that a meeting of two sides will be held here on Thursday following Pyongyang's request on Nov. 10 to hold talks on fielding a joint delegation at the opening and closing ceremonies of the Asian Games.

DPRK made its debut at the seventh Asian Games in 1974 in Tehran with a fourth-place finish in the medal tally. Thirty-two years later, it is sending 164 athletes to compete in 18 sports of the 15th Asiad in Doha.

The DPRK placed ninth at the medal tally with nine golds, 11 silvers and 13 bronze in their last Asiad appearance in 2002.

The DPRK and South Korea have held joint parade in the opening and closing ceremonies of international sports meetings seven times since the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.