North Korea told China it would not participate in next month’s Beijing Winter Olympics due to “moves of the hostile forces” and the COVID-19 pandemic, in a letter penned Wednesday by the DPRK Olympic Committee and Ministry of Physical Culture and Sports.

The letter wished Beijing success in hosting the event, and was reportedly delivered on the same day as North Korea conducted its latest “hypersonic” missile test.

A report on the letter was published in the party-run Rodong Sinmun on Friday morning, marking the first known report to domestic audiences about missing the games.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC)