North Korean Economy Watch

Pictured above: Mangyongbong-92 in the Wonsan Harbor.  See in Google Maps here.

UPDATE 1: The Mangyongbong-92 was used to take visitors from Rason to Kumgangsan at the end of August 2011.

ORIGINAL POST: According to Yonhap:

North Korea appears likely to use a ferry to try to attract foreign tourists, a source familiar with the issue said Friday, in what could be an attempt to earn much-needed hard currency.

For decades, the Mankyongbong-92 served as the only shuttle between North Korea and Japan, which have no diplomatic relations, and was mostly used by pro-North Korean residents in Japan.

The 9,700-ton ship was later used to transport cargoes before Tokyo blocked its entry as part of economic sanctions over Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear tests in 2006.

The ferry has also been suspected of being used for trafficking drugs, counterfeit money and other contraband goods.

North Korea is now preparing to use the vessel as a cruise ship for Chinese and other foreign businessmen during an upcoming international fair in Rason, the country’s special economic zone near China and Russia, the source said.

The North plans to use the ship to take the businessmen on a sightseeing trip in waters off the economic zone at the end of the international fair later this month.

The move is widely seen as the North’s attempt to use the ship for its tourism project.

“It is meaningful in that the Mankyongbong-92 would set sail as a cruise ship for the first time,” said Cho Bong-hyun, a researcher at the IBK Economic Research Institute, noting the North seems to be revitalizing tourism in the economic zone and attempting to attract Chinese tourists to earn hard currency.

The North designated Rason as a special economic zone in 1991 and has since striven to develop it into a regional transportation hub, though no major progress has been made.

…

Read the full story here:
N. Korea pushing to use ferry to attract foreign tourists
Yonhap
Kim Kwang-tae
2011-8-5

Steve Park, president of Korea Pyongyang Trading USA which imports a North Korean Soju (see previous posts here), claims that he has signed a MOU with the DPRK over tourism in the Kumgang resort.  This claim has been picked up by numerous media outlets.  It might be true, but I have yet to see the MOU documentation or any corroboration in the DPRK media.

According to the Hankyoreh:

Park Il-woo, also known as Steve Park, who has long conducted business with the communist nation, said his firm recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the Mount Kumgang tourism business.　He is the president of Korea Pyongyang Trading U.S.A., which imports a North Korean liquor branded Pyongyang Soju.

The MOU stipulates that the company will be in charge of marketing, investor relations and tourist recruitment for what is said to be the most scenic mountain on the peninsula.　Under the agreement, the mountain area will be developed into a multi-purpose resort.

He said he plans to visit North Korea this weekend or next week to discuss concrete business plans. He expressed confidence that he will be able to attract substantial U.S. investment for the business. The North is also expected to select Japanese and Chinese business partners soon, he added.

According to another article in the AFP:

“I understand (the North) will also select Japanese and Chinese business partners soon,” said Park, whose company imports a North Korean liquor branded Pyongyang Soju.

No sooner had the deal been announced than the South Koreans raised the point that Mr. Park will need the permission of the US government to carry out his business plans. According to Yonhap:

A small New York-based company selected by North Korea to revive a stalled tour program to a mountain resort in the isolated country needs the endorsement of the U.S. government for its project, a South Korean official said Friday.

The U.S. Executive Order 13570 that took effect in April prohibits the importation into the United States, directly or indirectly, of any goods, services, or technology from North Korea.

Under the order, the envisioned tour program to North Korea’s Mount Kumgang by Korea Pyongyang Trading U.S.A. is subject to the U.S. government’s approval, the official said.

The company, headed by a Korean-American businessman, has yet to file an application with the U.S. government for approval of its proposed tour project in the North, the official said on the condition of anonymity, citing office policy.

U.S. State Department officials in Washington were not immediately available for comment.

The comments by the South Korean official came days after the New York firm signed a memorandum of understanding with the North on the tour program.

According tot he Donga Ilbo, Mr. Park has not yet submitted any paperwork to the US government:

Korea Pyongyang Trading USA is known to have not yet submitted an application to the U.S. government for business with the North.

Another South Korean government source said, “Considering the scale and situation of the trading company that was reportedly chosen as the new operator of the Mount Kumgang tour program and under the conditions of U.S. sanctions against the North and the executive order, we cannot confidently say the Mount Kumgang tour project will be implemented.”

These views by Seoul officials apparently reflect their internal judgment that they cannot accept Pyongyang`s unilateral revocation of Hyundai Asan’s exclusive right to the tours and appointment of a new operator.

The South Korean government understands that the North is taking steps to attract another foreign business other than the American company. Government officials in Seoul predicted, however, that the North is unlikely to find an operator due to U.S. sanctions against Pyongyang, limited demand for tours, and lack of infrastructure in the North.

A timeline of Kumgang stories from the shooting until now can be found here.

According to the Choson Ilbo:

Chinese tourists arrive in Pyongyang on Friday [July 1, 2011] on the inaugural flight of North Korea’s national airline Air Koryo from Pudong Airport in Shanghai to the North Korean capital, in this photo released by Korean Central News Agency on Saturday.

It is the third direct route to Pyongyang from China after flights from Beijing and Shenyang and will operate every Tuesday and Friday.

Additional information:

1. I am not sure about the flights to Shenyang, but the Beijing-Pyongyang route takes place on Tuesday and Saturday.

2. Air Koryo temporarily ran a Shanghai-Pyongyang route last year for “Chinese volunteers” who wanted to visit North Korea for the 60th anniversary of the Korean war.

3. Air Koryo reportedly launched a Pyongyang-Kuwait route earlier this year.

4. No doubt these Chinese tourists will be enjoying the newly “acquired” properties in the Kumgang resort.

4. UPDATE: This from KCNA (2011-8-9):

Many tourists have come to the DPRK by chartered planes.

The Shanghai-Pyongyang air service, which started on July 1, is available on Tuesday and Friday every week.

Tourism through the Xian-Pyongyang air service began on July 28.

Malaysian tourists will come to Pyongyang through direct flight from Kuala Lumpur from August 19.

Along with the increase of tourists, their entry and exit procedures have been simplified.

Under the agreement between the DPRK International Travel Company and a Chinese immigration office, Pyongyang and Pudong airports offer visa exemption to tourists taking the Shanghai-Pyongyang air service.

Pictured above (Google Earth): April 2010 satellite imagery of the Kumgang tourist resort

The Kumgang resort was receiving 400,000 visitors per year until in July 2008 it became the scene of a terrible tragedy, the shooting of a South Korean tourist. Following the incident, the South Korean government prohibited its citizens from visiting the resort until the DPRK allowed a joint-Korean investigation of the shooting and made a guarantee of future safety.  The DPRK never agreed to these terms so the park fell idle.

The suspension of the project has cost the DPRK government millions of dollars. In response it has moved to pressure the ROK government to change course and allow the tours to resume. Below I have kept a timeline of the course of these events and their outcomes.

___________

2010-3-10: DPRK threatens to revoke contracts with South Korean partner, Hyundai-Asan

2010-3-18: Hyundai-Asan’s chief offers to resign

2010-3-18: DPRK threatens to seize Kumgang Resort

2010-3-24: Investors worried about losing out

2010-4-11:The DPRK “seizes” the Hyundai properties in the Kumgang resort

2010-4-11: Employees told to leave/sealed up

2010-4-11: Chinese tourists began arriving at the resort (here and here).

2010-4-23: Seoul denounces the seizure

2010-4-25: The National Defense Commission takes over the properties and puts the Korea Taepung International Investment Group in charge of attracting investors and tourists to the resort.

2010-5-3: Most South Korean and Chinese employees leave

2010-5-16: Taephung shows Chinese investors Kumgang

2010-8-7: DPRK using Kumgagn assets to serve tourists in the North

2010-10-31: Family reuniuons were held there in October/November

2010-11-15: Kumgang re-fozen

2011-4-1: DPRK rescinds Hyundai’s Kumgang contract rights

2011/4/29: SPA designates Kumgang special zone

2011-6-2: ”DPRK Law on Special Zone for International Tour of Mt. Kumgang” released. PDF of the statute here

2011-8-6: Steve Parks claims he has signed an MOU with the DPRK government

2011-8-19: Hyundai officials visit Kumgang amid dispute over fate of company assets

2011-8-22: DPRK orders expulsion of remaining South Korean staff, auctioning of assets

2011-8-23: South Korean workers leave Kumgang

2011-8-24: Kumgang opened to DPRK and Chinese toursits

2011-8-28: Taephung Investment Group outlines new Kumgang business plan

2011-8-30: South Korea calls for international boycott of Kumgangsan resort

2011-8-31: Chinese tourists arrive in Kumgang on Mangyongbong.

2011-9-6: Park Chol-su, head of Daepung International Investment Group, said he wants to discuss with South Korea’s Hyundai Asan how to handle its assets at the North’s Mount Kumgang.

2011-9-6: South Korea asks foreigners not to invest in Kumgang saying such investments would violate existing property rights.

Institute for Far Eastern Studies (IFES)
2011.05.26

On May 23, the DPRK released the “Outline of DPRK-China Joint Development Plan for Rason and Hwanggumpyong Economic and Trade Zone” consisting of detailed blueprint of two countries’ recent bilateral joint development deal.

According to Yonhap News, China and North Korea are planning to turn the Rason and Hwanggumpyong areas into a comprehensive industrial complex of tourism and manufacturing producing automobiles, mobile phones, agricultural and chemical products.

In addition, the Law on Rason Economic and Trade Zone and the Special Law on Hwanggumpyong Zone will adopt market economy principles which will permit foreign bank investments and independent contracts between corporations and workers. Although the development plans are not definite yet, it is significant since it hints at North Korea’s shifting position on opening up and economic development.

The bilateral development plan between Pyongyang and Beijing will stretch from Rajin, Sonbong, Ungsang, to Gulpo areas.

In the Rajin area, four major industrial complexes will be constructed consisting of storage, logistics and distribution centers, state of the art technology, and equipment, clothing and food manufacturing. In the Ungsang area, comprehensive a wood processing complex will be built while in the Gulpo area, a high-efficiency agriculture zone will be constructed. In the Sonbong area, truck manufacturing factories will be built along with other metal producing factories. In Rajin, docks will be built for ship building and maintenance.

There are also plans of developing the Rason area into an international tourism zone. There are immediate plans to build basic tourism infrastructure such as hotels, resorts, and roads for sightseeing. The long-term goal is to build a grand Northeast Asia tour course, which will include Yanbian of China; Rason, Chongjin, Mount Chilbo and Mount Kumgang of North Korea; Vladivostok and Sakhalin of Russia; Sapporo and Nakata of Japan; and Sokcho and Busan of South Korea.

As for the Hwanggumpyong area, four major industrial complexes will be established: one each for information, tourism and culture, modern protected agriculture, and food processing. More specifically, Hwanggumpyong will connect information between Hwanggumpyong and the border city of Dandong in China. In addition, culture and tourism will be developed through promotion of Arirang and other cultural performances and exhibitions.

As for the high-efficiency agriculture zone, a modern agriculture technology research center will be established and China-DPRK joint markets will be set up to serve as a central commerce center.

To assist with the industrial development in the area, land and sea routes will be developed where roads and railroads will be built and Rajin will be upgraded to a comprehensive and multi-purpose port.

There are additional plans of constructing a coal power station to replace the current thermoelectric power plant in Sonbong. There is also discussion of possibly developing other alternative energy plants, such as wind and solar. There are also plans of building basic facilities of mobile telecommunication to promote international communication.

Hwanggumpyong is an island on the Yalu River and the new developments in building ports and roads along with distribution network, Internet, and mobile telecommunication will become a link connecting North Korea with China.

Pyongyang is pursuing development through multiple cooperation channels. It has plans of establishing three-tiered cooperative system with joint management committee, joint development management committee and investment development corporation with Beijing. These committees will be responsible for amending and negotiating any issues that may arise during the process of development and supervise various areas of investments, enterprises, and environment and as well as inspect land and commerce development and basic facility operations.

Both Pyongyang and Beijing will attract foreign investments through market-based tax and financial policies in the Rason and Hwanggumpyong zones. Specifically, tax refund policy will be implemented and tariffs will be lifted from any imported equipment and materials necessary for production. The foreign investment companies will be allowed to choose their own banks or even establish financial institutions to assist in their business management.

In addition, workers and companies will be permitted to sign their own labor contracts. The companies will be granted autonomy in hiring and firing, pricing, bankruptcy, liquidation and other business practices based on market principles.

As for investment protection policy, foreign investors will be permitted to transfer or inherit profits and assets and foreign investor’s investments and assets will not be collected as national property by North Korea.

2012 DPRK tour dates: Koryo has posted travel dates for 2012, including a tour for Kim Il-sung’s 100th birthday.  Check the dates and itineraries here.

2011 Ultimate Frisbee tourney: Pyongyang will be home to its first ever Ultimate Frisbee tourney this summer.  August 27th.  Sign up now.

Ultimate Frisbee in North Korea. The most interesting sports thing you’ve ever done. Unless you’re Usain Bolt, who isn’t responding to my friend request.

The cost will be 890 Euros. This includes flights from and back to Beijing, tourist stuff Saturday and Monday, pizza, all other food that isn’t pizza, hotel, fields, entertainment. Visa fee (not optiona, 50 Euro) and ticket to the mass games (optional, but would be weird not to go: 80, 100, 150 or 300 Euro options) will be extra. North Korean microbrewed beer will be extra, but cheap (and good).

The itinerary includes two full days and three nights of touring. The tournament is a one day hat. We leave Beijing early Saturday and return early Tuesday. Participants should be in Beijing by Friday afternoon in order to collect visas get final info at Koryo Tours.
All nationalities except South Korean can participate.

Write an email to pyongyanghat@gmail.com if interested in attending and want more info.

If you know you’re in, write simon@koryogroup.com and ask for the necessary forms to get it going.

It ain’t cheap, but it will be amazing. We’re looking to get deposits by June 30th.

Tentative Itinerary for Ultimate Frisbee Tour
Thurs 25th Aug: Pickup in Beijing -Introduction to “Extreme Pollution Ultimate”, dinner at Dong Bei Ren Restaurant (Not included in tour fee)

Fri 26th Aug: Briefing/Collect Visas at Koryo Tours office in Beijing

Sat 27th Aug: N/A Arrival by Air Koryo flight from Beijing at 14:20, Fountain Park, Mansudae Grand Monument, Kim Il Sung Square, ARIRANG MASS GAMES

Sun 28th Aug: Taesongsan Park for Frisbee Tournament, picnic lunch Frisbee tournament, evening trip to Kaeson Youth funfair, dinner at Korean restaurant

Mon 29th Aug: Juche Tower, Mansudae Art Studio, Pyongyang Metro (extended ride on the subway), Arch of Triumph, USS Pueblo, Pizza Restaurant Lunch, FRISBEE CLINIC AT LOCAL MIDDLE SCHOOL. Paradise Micro-Brewery, Foreign Languages Bookshop, Farewell dinner at Duck BBQ restaurant, evening Karaoke option.

Tues 30th Aug: 9:00 Air Koryo Flight to Beijing. End of tour.

Previously, Koryo Tours hosted the first cricket match (2008) and first golf tournament (2005) in the DPRK.

Middlesbrough Women’s Football Team booklet: It has been posted to the Koryo Tours web page. You can download it here (PDF).  Learn more about this effort here and here.

According to Yonhap:

The number of Chinese visitors to North Korea’s border town of Sinuiju has reached 100,000 over the past year after Beijing lifted a four-year ban on Chinese group tours from the Chinese border city of Dandong, a news report said Friday.

Dandong, which borders Sinuiju, is a major trade route between North Korea and China.

The Chinese government resumed the group tours to Sinuiju from Dandong in April last year, a Dandong newspaper said, adding the number of Chinese tourists to Sinuiju is likely to go up in the coming months.

The one-day group tour program allows the Chinese to visit Sinuiju without visas.

China is the North’s last remaining ally and benefactor.

Read the full story here:
Chinese visitors to N. Korean border city top 100,000 in one year
Yonhap
2011-5-6

UPDATE: DPRK to Set Up Special International Tour Zone at Mount Kumgang
Institute for Far Eastern Studies (IFES)
NK Brief (11-05-2)
2011-5-3

According to KCNA news agency, the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People’s Assembly issued a decree on April 29 to set up a special zone for international tours at Mount Kumgang. It reported the special zone in Kangwon Province would include Kosong-eup and Onjong-ri of Kosong County; Samil-po, Hae-Kumgang, and Nae-Kumgang areas in Kumgang County, and Thongchon County.

The Central Tourist Guidance Agency expressed its intentions of increasing new tourist destinations depending on the progress made in the special zone. In addition, it also announced the annulment of October 2002 decree on the Kumgang Special Tourism Zone, which rescinded the exclusive rights of Hyundai Asan.

Previously on April 8, the DPRK’s Korean Asia-Pacific Peace Committee (KAPPC) informed Hyundai Asan that it would retract the monopoly rights of Hyundai. Instead, it expressed plans of entrusting the tours from the North through foreign businesses while Hyundai will continue to lead the tours from the South. The North announced the Mt. Kumgang tours will be renewed through appropriate national measures.

The KCNA explained, “The DPRK’s sovereignty will be exercised in the special tour zone.” Additionally, the DPRK is encouraging free investment in the special zone by corporations, individuals and other economic bodies and such investments are protected by law.

On the May issue of South Korean monthly magazine Minjog 21, the Committee of Investment and Joint Ventures of the DPRK and Kempinski Group was reported to have reached an agreement on its entrance into the Kumgang tourism project. The magazine also reported the Kempinski Group’s plans of modernizing the Wonsan Airport, development of Wonsan City into a resort town, and building roads connecting Wonsan with Kumgang.

Kempinski Hotels is a luxury hotel group known for its five-star hotels and resorts and recently expanded into Asia with current projects underway with India and China. Kempinski is majority owned by the Crown Property Bureau of Thailand and the royal family in Bahrain. Once the Kempinski Hotel is completed in Wonsan, it is expected to become an international resort town linked with Mt. Kumgang Special Zone.

The Mt. Kumgang tours from the North are expected to be managed by the Kempinski Hotels while the tours from the South will be still managed from Hyundai. An interview on April 13 by Ri Jong Hyok, vice-chairman of the KAPPC commented, “The buildings and facilities built by Hyundai will come to ruins if left at its current unoccupied stage. This is the reason why we are attempting to restart the tours, but only until the South decides to resume the tours.”

The Committee of Investment and Joint Ventures was upgraded from Joint Venture and Investment Guidance Bureau last July, becoming a central state organization in charge of all projects related to investments and joint ventures from overseas.

ORIGINAL POST: According to Yonhap:

North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament said Friday that it will set up a special zone for international tours of the country’s troubled mountain resort in an apparent move to induce foreign investment.

The North “will encourage free investment in the development of the special zone by corporate bodies, individuals and other economic bodies and will protect by law the invested capital and properties and income and other profits to be gained through business,” the North’s Supreme People’s Assembly said in a decree carried by the country’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The legislature said North Korea’s sovereignty will be exercised over the zone that includes several areas on Mount Kumgang, a scenic resort on the country’s east coast.

It also said the agency in charge of tourism will take relevant measures to increase new tourist destinations, depending on the progress in the special zone development. No details were provided.

Lee Jong-joo, a spokeswoman for South Korea’s Unification Ministry handling inter-Korean affairs, said the North’s move appears to be aimed at attracting foreign capital to develop the resort.

A spokesman for Hyundai Asan, a key South Korean tour operator in the mountain resort, said his company had no immediate comment on the North’s announcement. He asked not to be identified as he was not authorized to speak to media.

The decree came weeks after Pyongyang terminated exclusive tourism rights for Hyundai Asan, citing skepticism over the resumption of the joint venture.

The two Koreas launched the joint tour program in 1998 as part of moves to boost cross-border reconciliation and cooperation, providing a legitimate source of hard currency to the cash-strapped North.

However, Seoul suspended the tour program in 2008 when a female South Korean tourist was shot dead after straying into an off-limits military zone near the resort.

Pyongyang claims it has done everything to shed light on the shooting and guarantee the safety of future tourists, but Seoul says it has yet to receive a formal apology for the shooting or government-to-government promises to enhance safety.

Here is the KCNA statement:

Pyongyang, April 29 (KCNA) — A special zone for international tour of Mt. Kumgang will be established in the DPRK.

A decree on this decision was issued by the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People’s Assembly on Friday.

According to the decree, the special zone is to be set in the area of Mt. Kumgang in Kangwon Province and the zone will include the township and some areas of Onjong-ri in Kosong County, Lagoon Samil, Sea Kumgang area, Inner Kumgang area of Kumgang County and some areas of Thongchon County.

The DPRK sovereignty will be exercised over the zone.

The DPRK will encourage free investment in the development of the special zone by corporate bodies, individuals and other economic bodies and protect by law the invested capital and properties and income and other profits to be gained through business.

The Central Tourist Guidance Agency shall take relevant measures to increase new tourist destinations, depending on the progress made in the SZ development.

The decree of the SPA Presidium on “Setting Up Mt. Kumgang Tourist Zone in the DPRK” issued on Oct. 23, 2002 is no longer valid.

Aside: So there are two DPRK agencies that deal with tourism: KITC and the “Central Tourist Guidance Agency”?

Historical information:

The Kumgangsan resort was the scene of a terrible tragedy, the shooting of a South Korean tourist.  Allowing a joint-Korean investigation of the murder became a precondition by the South Korean government for resuming tourism to the resort.

On March 4th 2010, the DPRK first threatened to revoke contracts with the South Korean Hyundai-asan stating that a future guarantee of safety was sufficient for resuming tourism.

Later in th month, Hyundai-asan’s chief offered to resign.

In April 2010, the DPRK “seized” the Hyundai properties in the Kumgangsan resort.

Shortly afterwards, Chinese tourists began arriving at the resort (here and here).

The Donga Ilbo reported that the NDC took over the properties and put them in the Korea Taepung International Investment Group portfolio.  If the property was under Taepung control and has now been put under normal ministerial control, then this signals that Taepung’s sun might have set.

If possible, I would expect that Hyundai-asan will attempt to bring suit in South Korea against whichever company chooses to set up in the zone.

Read the full sotry here:
N. Korea to set up special int’l tour zone at Mount Kumgang
Yonhap
2011-4-29

According to Yonhap:

The number of North Koreans officially visiting China reached 28,600 in the first three months of the year, up 35 percent from the same period last year, a news report said Wednesday.

More than half of them visited China to work in either factories or restaurants, while 6,000 people visited China for conferences or businesses, the Voice of America reported, citing Chinese government data.

The VOA also said 700 North Koreans toured China for sightseeing, while fewer than 100 North Koreans visited China to meet relatives or friends and 7,300 visitors had other purposes. The report did not elaborate.

The data did not include information on North Koreans staying illegally in China after defecting, the VOA said.

Tens of thousands of North Korean defectors are believed to be hiding in China, a major land route through which many North Korean defectors travel to Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries before resettling in South Korea.

According ot the Choson Ilbo:

Chinese tourists will start visiting Russian and North Korean cities without visas on Wednesday under a formal agreement between Beijing and the two countries. The tour course starts in the Chinese border city of Hunchun in the lower reaches of the Duman (Tumen) River and goes on to eastern Russia and the Rajin-Sonbong special economic zone in North Korea.

A group of 21 tourists left Changchun, the capital of northeast China’s Jilin Province, on Tuesday for the Hunchun. Travelers will then visit Slavyanka, Vladivostok and Khasan, the official Xinhua news agency said. They then go to North Korea by train and tour the cities of the Duman River and the Rajin-Sonbong area.

The four-day tour starts every Wednesday and costs 2,300 yuan (approximately W390,000). Only Chinese travelers are eligible for the visa-free arrangement.

Read the full stories below:
Number of N. Korean visitors to China rises in first quarter
Yonhap
4/27/2011

Chinese Tourists Visit Russia, N.Korea Visa-Free
Choson Ilbo
4/28/2011

Accoridng to the Borneo Post:

Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) announced the arrival of another new airline as Air Koryo, the national carrier of the Democratic People’s Republic (DPR) of Korea recently made its maiden landing at KLIA.

The inclusion of Air Koryo took the total number of airlines operating at KLIA to 58. Air Koryo became the first airline to introduce direct schedule flights to Pyongyang from Kuala Lumpur.

Air Koryo will fly twice weekly to KL from the capital city of Pyongyang, on Mondays and Thursdays, utilising a TU-204 Next Generation Tupolev type of aircraft, with 142 seating capacity.

“Malaysia Airports welcomes Air Koryo’s schedule operations to KLIA and wishes them all the best for this service. Its presence will not only increase the connectivity at KLIA but also establish a new direct service between DPR Korea and Malaysia,” said Malaysia Airports managing director Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad in a press statement.

“Air Koryo has been operating charter flights to KLIA for the last few years. Now it has created sufficient market strength to start schedule operations and we are very happy with the new development,” he added.

General manager of Air Koryo in KL said, “This new destination will be a welcome addition to Air Koryo’s route expansion. Kuala Lumpur has been a much-anticipated destination and I am confident it will be a fruitful service for Air Koryo. Malaysians and Koreans alike can now enjoy the best of both countries through Air Koryo’s service.”

Air Koryo was founded on Sept 21, 1955 with the name Chosonminhang. It was renamed to Air Koryo in March 1992. Air Koryo’s networks cover Beijing and Shenyang in China, Vladivostok and Moscow (Russia), Bangkok (Thailand) and now Kuala Lumpur.

The Inter governmental Air Route Agreement was signed between DPR Korea and Malaysia 20 years ago. The airline became an affiliate member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) on October 21, 1996.

Read the full story here:
Air Koryo makes debuts at KLIA
Borneo Post
2011-4-20