Latest news with #Pyongyang
Reuters
6 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Reuters
Russian culture minister in North Korea praises 'unprecedented' cooperation
June 28 (Reuters) - Russian Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova arrived in North Korea on Saturday with a 125-strong delegation of performers and praised cultural cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang for achieving "unprecedented heights". Lyubimova, writing on the Telegram messaging app, said a series of concerts and lectures would take place in the North Korean capital in the coming days. Among those in the delegation were performers from the Pyatnitsky Choir and the Gzhel dance troupe. Lyubimova said that thanks to agreements clinched between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea leader Kim Jong Un "cooperation in the cultural sphere between our countries has reached unprecedented heights". Since Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Moscow and Pyongyang have drawn closer together, with the two leaders signing a treaty, including a mutual defence pact. After months of silence, North Korea and Russia have disclosed the deployment of North Korean troops and the role they played in Moscow's offensive to evict Ukrainian troops from the Kursk region.
BBC News
2 days ago
- BBC News
North Korea to open beach resort as Kim bets on tourism
Some tour agencies are sceptical of Wonsan's appeal to foreigners. It is "unlikely to be a major draw for most Western tourists", Mr Beard says. "Key sites like Pyongyang, the DMZ, and other brutalist or communist landmarks will continue to be the main highlights for international visitors once broader tourism resumes." However, Elliott Davies, director of Uri Tours, says North Korea holds a "niche appeal" for travellers drawn to unconventional destinations. "It's intriguing to experience something as familiar as a beach resort that's been shaped within the unique cultural context of North Korea." KCNA described the Wonsan development as a "great, auspicious event of the whole country" and called it a "prelude to the new era" in tourism. It was initially scheduled to open in October 2019, but ran into construction delays before the pandemic struck. Kim attended a ceremony to celebrate its completion on 24 June, accompanied by his daughter, Kim Ju Ae, and wife Ri Sol Ju. It marked Ri's first public appearance since a New Year's Day event in 2024. Russian ambassador Alexander Matsegora and embassy staff also attended. Some tour operators expect the resort to be opened to Russian tourists, who are currently the only foreign nationals allowed into some parts of the country. The resort's opening comes as North Korea and Russia strengthened their partnership in the face of sanctions from the West. North Korea has sent troops to fight for Russia in its invasion of Ukraine. On Thursday, the two countries also reopened a direct passenger train route between their capitals after a five-year suspension because of the pandemic.
The Independent
2 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Kim Jong Un watches swimmers use waterslide as North Korea opens huge beach resort to boost tourism
Kim Jong Un has unveiled a beach resort equipped with water slides, hotels, restaurants and shopping centres in a move to promote tourism. The North Korean leader was seen relaxing poolside next to his daughter and presumed heir Kim Ju Ae with a pack of cigarettes, cold drink and towel at the east coast Wonsan-Kalma retreat. It can accommodate up to 20,000 visitors, occupying a 4km (2.5 mile) stretch of beach, according to North Korea state media KCNA. Footage shared by state media showed Kim inspecting the grounds from a terrace several storeys above sea level, as he smiled and talked to officials. State media said the Wonsan-Kalma site would be 'recorded as one of the greatest successes this year' and 'should play a leading role in establishing the tourist culture' of North Korea. Russia 's ambassador in Pyongyang was in attendance as chief guest as Kim opened the sprawling complex, state media reported. Tourism remains one of the few ways North Korea can legally earn foreign currency since most of its economic activities are restricted by UN sanctions. However, Pyongyang's tourism industry is tightly controlled and designed to showcase a sanitised version of the country. The opening ceremony was held 'with splendor', state media reported, and Kim expressed "great satisfaction" at the development of the project. The Wonsan-Kalma resort was the first step in developing cultural tourism in the country, he said, and the government would soon confirm a major plan to develop more large-scale tourist areas. 'Kim Jong Un expressed belief that the wave of happiness to be raised in the Wonsan Kalma Coastal Tourist Zone would enhance its attractive name as a world-level tourist cultural resort, KCNA said. The beach resort was first announced in 2014 and construction started in 2018, with an initial finish deadline of 2019. The construction came to a standstill during the 2020 pandemic as the country sealed its borders while international sanctions and material supply issues exacerbated delays. North Korea started loosening the restrictions in 2023 after three years of almost no tourism, with no foreign visitors allowed in and limited information coming out. The country is yet to fully lift the ban on foreign tourists it imposed in early 2020 in response to the coronavirus pandemic. From February 2024 it has been accepting Russian tourists amid the deepening relations between the two countries. But Chinese group tours remain stalled, despite making up more than 90 per cent of visitors before the pandemic. In April, North Korea held the Pyongyang International Marathon for the first time in six years, with about 200 foreign runners participating. Lim Eul-chul, a professor at Kyungnam University's Institute for Far Eastern Studies in Seoul, said South Korean and American tours to North Korea won't likely restart anytime soon, though both new liberal South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and US President Donald Trump have expressed hopes to revive dialogue with North Korea. In January when Trump boasted about his ties with Kim, he said 'I think he has tremendous condo capabilities. He's got a lot of shoreline,' a likely reference to Wonsan-Kalma. North Korea hasn't publicly responded to Trump's outreach. It has repeatedly rejected Washington and Seoul's dialogue offers and focused on expanding its nuclear weapons program since Kim's high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with the US president collapsed in 2019.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Kim Jong-un hails new North Korean beach resort as one of country's ‘greatest feats' this year
Kim Jong-un is more accustomed to overseeing ballistic missile launches and political purges, but this week the North Korean leader opted for a change of pace with a family visit to a new beach resort – the vanguard in a tourism drive that may one day include foreign visitors. Kim, who had swapped his trademark Mao suit for a dark suit, white shirt and tie that matched the sandy expanse of Wonsan Kalma, hailed the coastal resort as one of the country's 'greatest feats' of the year, the state-run KCNA news agency said in a report issued on Thursday. Accompanied by his daughter – and presumed heir – Kim Ju-ae, and his wife, Ri Sol-ju, Kim relaxed poolside, a pack of cigarettes, cold drink and towel at his side, as they watched holidaymakers barrel down a pair of waterslides on Tuesday. Kim and his daughter – who is thought to be one of three children he has had with Sol-ju – were also photographed on a 4km-long beach, surrounded by officials and with what appears to be hotels in the distance. After months of international condemnation targeting Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme and its material support for Russia's war against Ukraine, the outing marked a return to the occasional soft-focus coverage of North Korea's first family. Located on the country's east coast, the resort boasts sports and recreation facilities as well as commercial and public catering services, KCNA said, adding that Kim had 'expressed belief that the wave of the happiness to be raised in the Wonsan Kalma coastal tourist area would enhance its attractive name as a world-level tourist cultural resort'. Authorities hoped the resort would attract 20,000 visitors a year after it opens on 1 July, KCNA said. After cutting a ribbon at an opening ceremony, Kim said the project had finally become a 'brilliant reality' after more than a decade of work and rising construction costs. It would, he said, 'play a leading role in establishing the tourist culture' of North Korea. But foreign tourists hoping to sample a beach holiday, North Korean-style, will be disappointed. For now, it appears that Wonsan Kalma will be open only to locals while the North slowly relaxes restrictions on overseas visitors introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic. Regular tourism is still effectively banned, although Russian tourists have been allowed to visit certain parts of the country on group tours, and foreign runners competed in a marathon in Pyongyang in April. The Kims' visit inevitably sparked palace intrigue among North Korea watchers. Ri-sol was making her first public appearance since she attended New Year celebrations in 2024, South Korean media reported, adding that she appeared to be carrying a Gucci bag – a possible violation of UN sanctions banning the export of luxury items to the North. Kim's daughter, who is aged about 12, has regularly accompanied her father since late 2022, reinforcing speculation that she is being lined up to become the fourth member of the Kim dynasty – and the first woman – to lead North Korea since it was founded in 1948.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
They Float But Can They Sail? North Korea's Russian Inspired Warships
A WSJ visual investigation of North Korea's capsized warship exposes the military ties between Pyongyang and Moscow, while raising questions about the viability of Kim Jong Un's latest destroyers.
