2024-01-12 08:58:01
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Russian tourists would be the first international travelers to enter North Korea since its borders closed in 2020, at the start of the global coronavirus pandemic.
Reports published Wednesday by Russia’s state-run Tass news agency underscore growing cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang. The initiative comes following the meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin in September at a cosmodrome in the Russian Far East.
Tass did not specify what dates the ski trip will take place, but the report surprised some observers specialized in Asia, who expected the first post-pandemic tourists to arrive from China, the North’s main diplomatic ally and economic lifeline.
According to Tass, an unknown number of tourists from the eastern region of Primorye, in the far east of Russia, will first fly to the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, where they will visit monuments such as the “Juche Tower”, named in honor of the local philosophy of “juche” or self-sufficiency.
The group will then travel to Masik Pass, on the eastern coast, where the most modern ski resort in the country is located, Tass added, noting that the visit was organized under the agreement reached between the governor of Primorye, Oleg Kozhemyako, and the North Korean authorities.
Kozhemyako traveled to Pyongyang in December to take part in talks on improving economic ties as part of a flurry of bilateral exchanges since the Kim-Putin summit. Before his visit, the president told Russian media that he hoped to talk regarding tourism, agriculture and trade cooperation.
The meeting between Kim and Putin increased foreign belief that Pyongyang is providing conventional weapons to Moscow for its war in Ukraine in exchange for cutting-edge Russian weapons technology.
Washington said last week it had evidence that Russia used missiles supplied by the North in Ukraine. The United States, South Korea, Japan and other countries condemned the missile transfer in a joint statement.
North Korea and Russia have separate disputes with the United States and its allies: Pyongyang over the advances of its nuclear program and Moscow over its prolonged war in Ukraine.
The North has been slowly easing pandemic restrictions and opening its international borders as part of efforts to revive an economy devastated by lockdowns and persistent U.S.-led sanctions. Their reputation suffered another setback in August 2022, when authorities made the highly dubious claim that they had overcome an internal outbreak of COVID-19.
“For North Korea, tourism is the easiest way to earn foreign currency under the international sanctions regime,” said Koh Yu-hwan, former president of the South Korean Institute for National Unification.
Koh said he hopes Pyongyang will also open the country to Chinese tourism.
Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul, noted that “visitors from Russia are unlikely to be as economically lucrative for North Korea as the return of more numerous visitors from China.”
“But the domestic political risk is relatively low, while it offers a symbol of revitalization in the relationship with Moscow, in line with Pyongyang’s current geopolitical narrative,” he added.
1705052004
#North #Korea #receive #Russian #tourists #pandemic #report
