North Korea on Tuesday became the first country to pull out of this year’s summer Olympics in Tokyo due to COVID-19 concerns. The announcement was made by North Korea’s Sports Ministry. It marks the first time the country’s athletes will miss a Summer Olympics since it boycotted Seoul in 1988 amid the Cold War. Plans to withdraw were made on March 25 during a meeting of North Korea’s Olympic committee and Sports Minister Kim Il Guk, the ministry said on its website. “The committee decided not to join the 32nd Olympics Games to protect athletes from the global health crisis caused by the coronavirus,” the ministry said. Pyongyang maintains that it has no CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus cases, however, experts say this isn’t likely. The country previously described its anti-virus efforts as a “matter of national existence,” and has banned tourists, restricted cross-border traffic, among other measures. The North’s …