The remark sparked public anger and criticism that the prime minister had insulted the hockey team members who have been working hard for years to play better in the Olympics. Critics also said the government is trying to use the team for a show with North Korea because the team is low-ranked.

On Friday, Lee said the remark had been misunderstood.

"I acknowledge that my remark had room for misunderstanding, but that was not my real intention," Lee said at the start of an annual policy briefing held by the foreign ministry, the defense ministry and other security-related agencies.

Lee said what he really meant was that some South Korean athletes want to have talented North Korean players join them so that the team will be able to play better and score a win in the Olympics.

"My real intention was to convey this story to reporters, but I failed to explain this real intention properly," Lee said. "I apologize to those who have been offended by my remark."

Last week, the two Koreas held their first high-level talks in two years and agreed on the North's participation in next month's Olympics. That spurred hopes for a possible warming of inter-Korean relations, which have been badly strained amid nuclear and missile tensions.

Lee said it's important to take better advantage of the dialogue channel with the North.

"Just because North Korea is participating in the PyeongChang Olympics and Paralympics and inter-Korean talks have resumed doesn't mean that the security situation on the Korean Peninsula will see any immediate improvement," Lee said.

"However, it is also true that the blocked dialogue channel between the South and the North has opened, even on a limited basis. How to take advantage of this channel is a future task for us," he said. "I hope we and the international community will exercise wisdom to come up with an opportunity to help PyeongChang's success lead to peace on the Korean Peninsula."  (Yonhap)