North Korea will receive Russian tourists, the first since the pandemic, according to report

Russian tourists would be the first international travelers to enter North Korea since the closure of its borders in 2020, at the beginning of the global pandemic of the coronavirus.

Information published Wednesday by Russia’s state-run Tass news agency underscores growing cooperation between Moscow and Pyongyang. The initiative comes after the meeting held in September with the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Unand the president of Russia, Vladimir Putinat a cosmodrome in the Russian Far East.

The ski trip, scheduled for February, surprised some observers specialized in Asiawho expected that the first post-pandemic tourists arrived from Chinathe North’s main diplomatic ally and economic lifeline.

The website of the agency organizing the visit, Vostok Intur, indicates that the four-day trip will begin on February 9.

According to Tass, an unknown number of tourists Coming from the eastern region of Primorye, in the far east of Russia, they 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 summit between Kim and Putin. Before his visit, the president told Russian media that he hoped to talk about tourism, agriculture and trade cooperation.

The meeting between Kim and Putin increased foreign belief that Pyongyang is providing conventional weapons to Moscow for their war in Ukraine in exchange for cutting-edge Russian weapons technology.

Washington said last week that it had evidence that Russia used missiles supplied by the North in Ukraine. USA, South KoreaJapan and other countries condemned the missile transfer in a joint statement.

North Korea and Russia maintain independent disputes with USA and its allies: Pyongyang for the progress of its nuclear program and Moscow for his 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 sanctions led by USA. His reputation suffered another setback in August 2022, when authorities made the highly dubious claim that they had overcome a domestic outbreak of COVID-19.

“For North Koreatourism is the easiest way to get foreign currency under the international sanctions regime“said Koh Yu-hwan, former president of the South Korean Institute for National Unification, noting that he hopes Pyongyang will also open the country to Chinese tourism.

The arrival of russian tourists before the Chinese demonstrates, once again, the interest of Kim Jong Un in strengthening its alliances with the Kremlin, said Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the Institute of Far Eastern Studies at Kyungnam University in Seoul.

It is likely that the reopening to tourism from China generate much more income, since, before the pandemic, it represented around 90% of international arrivals to the country. In 2019, North Korea received a record number of 300,000 foreigners, bringing in revenues of between $90 million and $150 million, according to experts.

Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul, noted that “It is unlikely that visitors to Russia be as economically lucrative for North Korea as the return of visitors from Chinawhich are more numerous”.

“But the internal political risk is relatively low, while it offers a symbol of revitalization in the relationship with Moscowin line with Pyongyang’s current geopolitical narrative”he added.

The price of the Russian tour package is US$750 per person, according to Tass and the travel agency.