DPRK Business Monthly · DPRK Business Monthly hundreds of thousands of dollars to mining companies to buy equipment and expand, and each was repaid. This summer Schulze lent an additional

DPRK Business Monthly

Volume II, No. 8, September 2011

As a rich man is likely to be a better customer to the industrious people in his neighbourhood than a poor, so is likewise a rich nation. [Trade embargoes] by aiming at the impoverishment of our neighbours, tend to render that very commerce insignificant and contemptible.

Adam Smith, Wealth of Nations

Coca-Cola in Pyongyang? [This is an edited version of a story that appears in the October 10 edition of Forbes Asia magazine.]

Investor Gabriel Schulze–tall, blue-eyed, American–walked into the conference room at the Yanggakdo International Hotel for his business meeting with the North Koreans. Schulze was here, on only his own authority, to bring Coca-Cola to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

``We warmly welcome you, the Coca-Cola delegation, with Mr. Schulze as your leader,” said Park Chol Su, the president of North Korea’s Taepung International Investment Group. “I hope this will be a good opportunity to make progress in the relations between the US and Korea.”

Why is an American businessman in Pyongyang pitching America’s most famous soft drink to the world’s most inhospitable and politically incorrect marketplace? Because, surprisingly, North Korea is ready to buy. Eager even, eager enough to let the world know, allowing a reporter to sit in on its Coca-Cola discussions with Schulze in Pyongyang, recording everything. Park says his Taepung Group wants to bring market principles to a planned economy.

North Korea is inviting not only China but also the wider Western World to invest in its near-moribund economy. Officials there claim the country is open for business with outsiders; the political stripes of the investors do not matter as much as the money in their pockets and the willingness to deal.

American signature brands may actually be most welcome. Pyongyang’s economic representatives said that they also want KFC to open stores there.

“Coke is strategic. I hope that Coke will serve as a bridge for relations between the two governments,” Park told Schulze’s group, with Forbes Asia along. ``Then, perhaps, sanctions could be lifted, and more substantial investments could follow. The door will be open to the whole world, not only China–even the US, even Western countries.”

Gabriel Schulze, scion of the Newmont Mining family, has been surveying the DPRK market on the strength of informal connections to Coke and one of its bottlers, SABMiller, but without either company’s top-level approval. Both Coca-Cola and SABMiller have officially denied any plans to invest in the DPRK.

Schulze runs a family investment office out of Beijing, Schulze Global Investments, which specializes in China and difficult emerging markets.

Would it even be legal for Coca-Cola to do business in North Korea, given the presence of international and US sanctions? Those sanctions have proven to be narrow and permissive in practice, and there is no stricture against soft drinks (a sip of Coca-Cola is already imported, mostly from China, and sold to the few with disposable hard currency).

Hundreds of foreign businesses, most of them Chinese, have gone into North Korea. And these businesses have made money. In a 2007 survey of 250 Chinese businesses operating in North Korea, scholars Stephan Haggard and Marcus Noland found 88% saying they could turn profits.

At least one American investor has profited in North Korea as well: Schulze Global. Three times in 2008 it made loans of


International

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hundreds of thousands of dollars to mining companies to buy equipment and expand, and each was repaid. This summer Schulze lent an additional US$1 million to finance a North Korean conglomerate’s purchases of corn to feed its workers. (He consulted with sanctions lawyers in the US before making the loans, and has filed notices with the US Treasury Department.)

“That opened the doors,” Schulze says, to the Coke project. Making the world’s favorite carbonated beverage in Pyongyang would be quite another matter, though. The country still operates on a planned economy, and has difficulty even manufacturing plastic bottles and cans. The government barters for sugar from Castro’s Cuba and would probably have to import steel to build a Coke factory. And although the estimated per capita income in the DPRK is US$1,200 a year, the Coke factory’s workers would be paid barely more than a dollar a day (low wages are a key selling point to foreign investors). Further, the nation is plagued with persistent food shortages. Does a country this poor have consumers for the iconic American drink?

The answer, actually, appears to be yes, at least in the capital: Home to the privileged upper crust, or an eighth of the nation’s 24 million people, Pyongyang has a visibly robust elite economy. The city’s wide thoroughfares, bereft of private automobiles five years ago, are now filled with tens of thousands of foreign cars, including American and Japanese brands.

Mobile phone use is common, with more than 300,000 accounts in the capital using the 3G network built by Egyptian telecom Orascom.

Soft drinks–typically fruity concoctions in glass bottles–are sold at hundreds of kiosks throughout Pyongyang.

Schulze notes that a Coca-Cola investment would be far more symbolic than it would be lucrative. The total investment might not exceed US$10 million (with Schulze Global’s share at US$2 million) --tiny by comparison with some resource deals.

Schulze is, in a way, following in the footsteps of his great-great-grandfather, Thompson, the mining magnate. Thompson shocked his friends in the business establishment when, after returning from Russia in 1917, he urged the US and Britain to engage with the new Communist regime there. A biography of Thompson, The Magnate, quotes him as saying, “If they are recognized and trade established, Russia would be kept within the bounds of commercial custom. But if they leave Russian radicalism to grow like a cancer,” he said, ``it is going to be a menace to the world.”

Russia Sends Food Aid to NK Russia has sent 50,000 tonnes of food aid to North Korea, according to China’s Xinhua News Agency.

Russia’s state-owned United Grain Company has sent two shipments of food aid, Xinhua reported citing a statement from the company.

The aid came in two batches -- of 25,000 tonnes and 24,500 tonnes, respectively. They were shipped from the Russian port of Novorossiysk.

The foreign ministry in Moscow said that Russia regards this humanitarian operation as ``a contribution to the traditional neighborly relations between the peoples of the two countries.”

``Russia May Write Off DPRK’s Debt” Russia will most likely write off North Korea's Soviet-era US$11 billion to clear the way for closer economic cooperation, according to the newspaper Izvestia.

Moscow and Pyongyang discussed closer energy cooperation and the outstanding debt when North Korea's leader Kim Jong Il traveled to eastern Siberia for talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev last month, the paper said, citing a source close to the finance ministry.

Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak said at the time the first step involved Pyongyang acknowledging that its owes the money to Russia as the successor of the Soviet Union, followed by agreement on the mechanism for the payback. Izvestia said, however, that the finance ministry was ready to write off the North Korean debt without any preconditions because the unsettled debt was standing in the way of the two countries' closer economic cooperation.

The newspaper said the Russians offered North Korea a scheme under which 90 percent of the debt would be written off, while another 10 percent would be used to implement joint projects in North Korea.

Pyongyang has given its preliminary agreement to the scheme, the newspaper said, adding that all the necessary agreements could be signed by the year's end.

The projects Moscow is keen to pursue with Pyongyang include a long-stalled plan for a trans-Korean railroad, the construction of an electricity transmission line and a pipeline carrying Russian gas to South Korea via the North.

The Story Behind Noko Jeans

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[The following is an edited version of an article which appeared in [The following is an edited version of an article which appeared in [The following is an edited version of an article which appeared in [The following is an edited version of an article which appeared in DerDerDerDer SpiegelSpiegelSpiegelSpiegel]]]] Three Swedish men have established a line of jeans made in North Korea and sold in Stockholm. But they weren't prepared for the criticism their pants have produced.

On the spur of the moment they had an idea. They sent an e-mail to North Korea. The subject line read: "Investing in the Democratic People's Republic." More than two years later, a shipment of 1,100 designer jeans arrived in Stockholm. There were two models -- "Kara," a slim fit, and "Oke," a loose fit -- and they were made in Pyongyang.

On July 20, 2007 Jakob Ohlsson, 23, Tor Rauden Källstigen, 24, and Jacob Aström, 25,were skimming North Korea's "official Web page," and discovered a new button titled "Business." After only two mouse clicks, they found themselves looking at a list of possible North Korean export goods: cosmetics, trucks, marble, weapons, mineral water, fire extinguishers and -- jeans. They wrote to the contact address, claiming that they were import-export managers for a fictitious company, and they waited. Less than 24 hours later they got a reply. It was the beginning of "Noko Jeans."

In November 2007 the trio made their first telephone call to the North Korean Embassy in Stockholm, and in December 2007 they gave a North Korean delegation two sample pairs of jeans, including a used pair owned by one of the three, for inspection at a textile factory in Pyongyang.

They traveled to the DPRK, and spent the next ten days visiting textile factories. They finally sealed a deal with the director of a mining operation that included both a zinc processing and a textile division. They decided on black jeans, as blue jeans were perceived as an American symbol.

A year later, in the summer of 2009, the Swedes returned to North Korea to ensure that the North Korean women who worked in the factory were sewing correctly. They were, but unfortunately they were missing the buttons, which had become stuck somewhere en route from Pakistan to Pyongyang.

On November 11, 2009 the jeans finally arrived in Stockholm. But then the experiment turned into a problem. The department store where the Swedes had planned to sell their Noko Jeans from North Korea refused to cooperate, claiming that it didn't want to become involved in politics.

So the trio opened their own shop in Stockholm.

Korean Sharing Movement

Prof. Park Jae-won briefs the press just before crossing the DMZ to Kaesong with anti-malarial aid last year [Photo: KSM]

Mission statement from the Korean Sharing Movement (KSM):

Malaria is a problem that directly affects the health of people in both Koreas, and this is a case where maximum synergy can be achieved only when the strengths of North and South are combined. For this reason since 2008 KSM and the ROK’s Kyonggi Province have been conducting the Malaria Control Project in the DPRK, which to date has treated

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500,000 people from 130,000 households in the Kaesong Area.

This project has been conducted as a cooperative effort between KSM, which has years of experience in humanitarian aid work in North Korea and maintains solid communication lines with the North Korean side, and Kyonggi Province, which boasts the largest provincial government organization in the country and provides the full expenses of the project.

This is not a new approach to North Korean humanitarian and development aid. Since early 2000, KSM has conducted numerous agriculture and livestock development projects in conjunction with various South Korean local governments. Since 2004 KSM has worked successfully with Kyonggi Province on agricultural development projects at North Korean collective farms and integrated community-based development projects.

In 2008, the first year of the project, the total of malaria patients in all of North Korea decreased by 30% from 23,409 to 18,679. During the same period in northern Kyonggi Province, which has the most malaria cases in South Korea, the number of malaria patients decreased by about 50% from 1,007 to 490. Subsequently the numbers have continued to steadily decrease in the project’s focus area of Kaesong as well as in Kyonggi Province.

Our narrow goal is to eliminate malaria outbreaks from the Korean peninsula. But our broader wish is that we may once again enter a period of improved inter-Korean relations and active humanitarian and development aid such as we saw before 2008. Instead of malaria, we would like to see peace spread throughout our peninsula.

Samaritan's Purse Delivers More Aid to NK

Footage from the Associated Press Television News showed a cargo plane loaded with US$900,000-worth of food, medical aid, soap, blankets and cooking kits landing at Pyongyang's Sunan Airport September 3. The cargo was a gift from North Carolina-based aid group Samaritan's Purse. The charity said that it has pledged US$1.2 million for flood-stricken North Korea.

``Pipeline Could Open New Inter-Korean Era”

Hong Joon-pyo, chair of South Korea’s Grand National Party (GNP), said that the project to supply the ROK with natural gas from Russia via a pipeline through North Korea could be the ``start of a new era in North-South relations.” He dismissed fears that the DPRK might cut off the supply for political reasons, saying, “We are advancing the construction of this pipeline across North Korea based on Russia taking ownership and responsibility for it.” He added, ``If for any reason the pipeline is blocked, the gas will be carried by sea to South Korea at a 30% discount.” He revealed that liquefied gas storage locations are now being built on the east coast of Kangwon Province.Russian state gas firm OAO Gazprom (GAZP.RS) said Thursday it has started talks with North Korea to build a natural gas pipeline across North Korea to South Korea.

Hong and four other members of the GNP visited the Kaesong Joint Industrial Complex in the DPRK September 30. The

GNP leader has been calling for a ``flexible approach” on economic and humanitarian issues related to Pyongyang and for

those issues to be separate from political and military issues. Hong has called for “a paradigm shift” in aid policy toward

North Korea. “It’s time to make our North Korea policy a bit more flexible,” he said in a speech at the National

Assembly September 7. South Korea should help to improve irrigation systems and operate joint farming projects in the

North to boost the country’s food output, he added. Hundreds of South Korean companies have factories in Kaesong, on

the North Korean side of the DMZ, using North Korean labor. Hong and his group met with business owners there, a

GNP statement said.

Hong’s trip was also seen as a move to hasten the implementation of a Russian proposal to build a natural-gas pipeline

Inter-Korean

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through the divided peninsula.

At a meeting in Moscow between Gazprom Chief Executive Alexei Miller and North Korea's Oil Minister Kim Hui Yong, the sides discussed the "practical organization" of the pipeline，and signed a Memorandum of Understanding. The two sides agreed to form a joint working group to realize the project, Gazprom said in a press release. Gazprom has previously held talks with Korea Gas Corp. (Kogas), to supply natural gas to South Korea.

North Korea is expected to earn as much as US$500 million a year in rent and maintenance fees for the overland gas pipeline. The project is one of the fruits of the trip to Russia and China last month by North Korean leader Kim Jong Il

ROK Religious Leaders Visit DPRK

Representatives of the KCRP deliver a statement prior to their departure from Seoul [Photo: Yonhap]

Leaders of South Korea’s seven major religions left for Pyongyang September 21 in a four-day bid to help improve North-South ties. It was the first time for all seven presidents of the Korean Conference on Religion and Peace (KCRP) to visit North Korea at the same time. The seven leaders visited Pyongyang and Mount Paektu, the highest mountain on the Korean peninsula, during their trip, which ended September 24.

“Our visit will play an important role in improving relations between the two Koreas,” said Archbishop Hyginus Kim Hee-joong of Kwangju, representative president of the KCRP, before leaving the ROK. “We hope the South Korean government will continue to support our efforts,” the archbishop added.

In a statement, the religious leaders said, “We will deliver religious people’s wishes for peace to North Korea, and contribute to the opening of a channel for reconciliation and cooperation between the two sides.”

After arriving in Pyongyang, the delegation attended a reception dinner. They visited Changchung Catholic Church and Bongsu Protestant Church, and met members of the North Korean Council of Religionists. Present at the meeting on the North Korean side were Jang Jae On, chairman of the Religious Believers Council of Korea; Kang Yong Sop, chairman of the Central Committee of the Christian Federation of Korea; Sim Sang Jin, chairman of the Central Committee of the Buddhist Federation of Korea; and Kang Chol Won, vice-chairman of the Central Guidance Committee of the Chondoist Association of Korea.

Democratic People's Republic of Korea Oil Industry

Minister Kim Hui Yong and Gazprom Management

Committee Chairman Alexei Miller sign the MOU

[Photo: KCNA].

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Following the meeting, the delegation visited Mangyongdae, the Arch of Triumph, the Taedonggang Combined Fruit Farm and its new processing factory, and watched the Arirang mass games.

After praying for peace on Mount Paektu, they returned to Seoul via China September 24.

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Domestic

NK Cruise Ship Completes Maiden Voyage

A Chinese tourist poses for a picture before boarding the Mangyongbong. [Photo: Carlos Barria/Reuters]

The Mangyongbyong, a North Korean ship which used to shuttle between: the DPRK port of Wonsan and the Japanese

port of Niigata, has been converted into a cruise ship taking tourists from the port of Rajin, near the China-Russia

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border to the scenic Mount Kumgang resort near the South Korean border.

Some 130 tourists were on the cruise’s maiden voyage August 30, which was given a rousing sendoff by local residents of Rason, led by Deputy Mayor Hwang Chol Nam. Hwang said that Rason, the center of a special economic zone, welcomes visitors of any nationality visa-free. They must, however, apply though a recognized tourism company . ``And that goes for the Mount Kumgang area, too,” he said.

The DPRK has teamed up with a Chinese travel company to operate the 21-hour cruises on the 9,700-tonne vessel.

DPRK Unveils Plans for Developing Mount Kumgang Yonhap reported that North Korea has announced its business plans to redevelop the Mount Kumgang resort once considered a symbol of inter-Korean reconciliation.The business plans were presented to Yonhap News Agency by Park Chol Su, head of Taepung International Investment Group, which serves as a window to North Korea for foreign capital.Taepung invited a group of foreign business executives and journalists to the resort to explain the business plans. During the four-day trip the group visited Mount Kumgang by ship after departing from the northeastern port city of Rason.The plans call for North Korea to redevelop the resort into an international tourism and business zone by building golf courses and hosting casinos from China and Western nations.Using a railway linking Beijing to Pyongyang and the resort, North Korea plans to attract tourists from the United States, Japan, China and Hong Kong, Park said.In the first-stage plan, the North will build energy and electricity facilities in an area of 60 sq m in the resort, and let foreign business partners develop part of the area with their own projects, Park said.North Korea plans to collect taxes from foreign partners who operate their own facilities, according to Park. The area will be open to foreigners, but remain out of bounds to ordinary North Koreans.

DPRK Opens Online Medical Service

KCNA reported that a nationwide online medical service system has been established in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

According to KCNA, scientists of the Academy of Koryo Medical Science and the Korean Computer Center established the relevant database by analyzing and sorting a huge amount of information.

The scientists developed the program "Koryo Medicine" for diagnosis, prescription and consultation, and opened a homepage, also titled "Koryo Medicine," said the report.

The homepage has a special medical service assistance system for displaying the diagnoses of hundreds of diseases, their treatment and prescription, service systems for health promotion, access to Koryo medical vocabulary and medicines, and an online consultation system, said the report.

The server works 24 hours a day to ensure prompt and convenient provision of information to subscribers, it added

``NK Interested in Joint Mining Ventures”

by Choi Kyung-soo, president of the North Korea Resources Institute in Seoul

[This is an edited version of an article which appeared in East Asia Forum.]

North Korea hosts sizeable deposits of more than 200 different minerals. Deposits of coal, iron ore, magnesite, gold ore, zinc ore, copper ore, limestone, molybdenite and graphite are the largest, and all have the potential for the development of large-scale mines. North Korea’s magnesite reserves are the second-largest in the world after China, and its tungsten deposits are likely the sixth-largest in the world.

Yet North Korean mining production has decreased significantly since the early 1990s. It is estimated that the average operation rate of existing mine facilities is below 30 percent of capacity. North Korea has a shortage of mining equipment

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such as load haul dumps, jumbo drills and conveyor systems. The energy shortage, and the age and generally poor condition of the power grid are hampering North Korean mineral production. Almost all North Korean mines suffer from a lack of electric power. To improve mine productivity, the construction of large-scale hydroelectric plants as well as the remodeling of the overall power system in cooperation with other countries would help address this problem.

The North Korean government has given special priority to the exploration and development of new mineral resources, especially ferrous and non-ferrous minerals, for which it is seeking international assistance through joint projects.

North Korea has also expressed an interest in mining technology innovation, including the development of mineral processing technology for oxide minerals, purification technology for raw metals, and separation and purification technology for rare metal minerals. North Korea is interested in joint projects with other countries to develop these mining technologies.

But North Korea is not forthcoming about its mining projects, and will not provide information without prior investment agreements with foreign companies. Nevertheless, inter-Korean mining cooperation is very important for both sides. North Korea can increase mine production and stimulate its economy, while South Korea has the potential to secure nearby mineral commodities. South Korea depends on imports of mineral commodities at the moment due to its own poor supply of mineral resources. South Korea’s import costs for mineral commodities have significantly increased.

If political relations stabilize between the two Koreas in the near future, joint mining projects will be a high priority. South Korea is ready to resume mining negotiations when security preconditions have been met. The first mining project to resume between the Koreas is likely to be in the Tanchon district. In 2007 a joint mine survey was carried out by the two Koreas in this area. Mining cooperation could be easily resumed at the Taehung magnesite mine and the Komdok zinc mine, both of which are viable projects. If North Korea addresses the investment risk and barriers to entry, South Korean companies would quickly consider investing in these mines.

Entrance to the ``Forge Ahead” Mine [Photo: KCNA]

Pyongyang Hosts 17th ITF Taekwondo Championships North Korea hosted the 17th International Taekwondo Federation’s World Championships in early September, welcoming 800 athletes from more than 80 countries, including the United States.

``More engagement is better for improving relations with North Korea and the United States,” said Chang Ung, a DPRK delegate to the International Olympic Committee. “Active engagement, coupled with visits from both sides, are good because they help us understand each other better.”

Improving relations meant that an effort was made to provide the visitors, including the foreign press, with better communications than normal: A mobile phone could be rented for US$3.50 a day, but to call outside the country it cost US$6 a minute.

In a special ceremony after the championships, a 72-year-old Irishman became the first European inducted into Pyongyang’s prestigious martial arts hall of fame. Pensioner Robert Howard, now a grandmaster, was awarded the ninth-

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degree black belt in the sport he has been practicing for 46 years.

Grandmaster Howard, a retired roofing contractor from Dublin renowned for smashing tiles, said he was honored to receive the accolade.

Inducted at the same time were two North Koreans and a Vietnamese man living in Canada.

Economic Zones China to Supply Electricity to Rason Zone

China has agreed to provide electricity to the Rason Special Economic Zone in North Korea's northeast, according to Yonhap.The agreement was signed between Jang Song Thaek, vice-chairman of the North's powerful National Defense Commission, and China's Commerce Minister Chen Deming.The project calls for laying high-voltage power distribution lines between the Chinese border city of Hunchun and the DPRK city of Rajin, as well as building a thermal power plant in Rason.Construction of the power lines is likely to begin soon while the two sides are in talks to work out details for the envisioned power plant, Yonhap said."Power is an important infrastructure for developing the Rason special economic zone," said Cho Bong Hyun, an expert at the Seoul-based IBK Economic Research Institute. "China's agreement to provide power increases the chances of the zone's success."

``Korea Business Day” Promotes Rason [The following is an edited report from the Institute for Far Eastern Studies.][The following is an edited report from the Institute for Far Eastern Studies.][The following is an edited report from the Institute for Far Eastern Studies.][The following is an edited report from the Institute for Far Eastern Studies.]

At the seventh China Jilin and Northeast Asia Investment and Trade Expo (NEASIAEXPO) the North Korean delegation actively promoted the Rajin-Sonbong (Rason) Economic and Trade Zone to attract investment.

During the expo the DPRK’s Ministry of Trade and China’s Ministry of Commerce and People’s Government of Jilin Province co-sponsored the “(North) Korean Business Day and China-DPRK Trade and Investment Session” at the Changchun International Conference and Exhibition Center on September 7.

Hwang Chol Nam, deputy mayor of Rason City, said that the 470-sq-km Rason Economic and Trade Zone will soon become the “transportation hub of Northeast Asia, connecting China and Russia via the Tumen River, and Japan across the East Sea. Rajin Port has an annual loading capacity of three million tons; Sonbong Harbor is able to transport two to three million tons of oil a year; and Ungsang Harbor is able to handle up to 600,000 cu-m of lumber annually.” He also noted that the ports are deep enough for large ships and do not freeze during the winter.

Hwang also elaborated on the zone’s eight preferential policies providing special tax benefits for foreign investors. He said, “The government of North Korea will guarantee the investment of the foreign investors by not nationalizing or demanding requisitions. For inevitable cases where such demands occur, proper compensation will be provided.”

Income tax in the zone, at 14 percent, is 11 percent lower than in other areas in North Korea. For companies with business plans over ten years, foreign capital companies will receive three years of tax-free benefit starting from the profit-earning year, and for two years thereafter will receive 50 per cent tax-free benefits. According to Hwang, over 100 foreign companies and offices are already operating businesses in the special economic zone.

He also announced that the current highway construction project connecting Rajin with Wonjung is expected to be completed in October, and that the Tumen-Rajin port railway system is to be upgraded to a broad-gauge railway next month.

Specifically, Russian Railways reached an agreement with North Korea to repair the Hasan-Rajin Railway and improve the Rajin port facilities, especially focusing on Pier 3. The plans include upgrading Rajin to be a container harbor capable

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of transporting twenty-foot-equivalent units annually. Russia and the DPRK have already conducted measurements and geological surveys, and reached the process design phase.

Many foreign media correspondents covered the “Korea Business Day.” At the event North Korea presented a promotional video of the zone.

Comment September saw several hopeful signs of a relaxation in North-South tensions, together with a boost for business development and a more adventurous approach on the part of the DPRK to tourism.

A delegation of religious leaders met their North Korean counterparts, and the head of the South's ruling Grand National Party made a pioneering trip to Kaesong to meet South Korean business people there and view the joint economic zone at first hand.

Meanwhile, South Korean leaders, including the conservative President Lee Myung-bak, have welcomed the steps the DPRK and Russia have taken to promote the building of a gas pipeline through the peninsula. Both North and South will benefit financially from this project, which will also give them both a vested interest in peace.

Touring North Korea

Koryo Tours Cycle Trip Interesting: NK Tourism Official

The bicycle tourism which took place in the DPRK two weeks ago under the sponsorship of Koryo Tours, a British tourist agency based in Beijing, was very interesting, Hong In Chol, a department director of the State General Bureau of Tourism, told North Korea's KCNA.

Speaking on September 27,World Tourism Day, Hong added that the DPRK is putting great efforts into developing tourism, with an eye to promoting understanding, harmony, friendship and cooperation among nations and people of the world.

The country joined the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in September 1987 and the Pacific-Asia Tourism Association (PATA) in April 1996.

The number of travel companies and people interested in DPRK tourism is steadily increasing in Asian and European countries, Hong said, adding that, ``In particular, many tourists have visited the DPRK in the period of the grand gymnastic and artistic performance Arirang through international air routes and chartered flights from Shanghai, Xi'an and Harbin in China, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia."

``We have travel offices in China, Malaysia and Germany, and plan to open such offices in other countries," Hong revealed. ``Projects aimed at modernizing tourism infrastructure are progressing apace," he said. ``We also intend to diversify our tourism programs with cultural, sports, bicycle, golf and health treatment tourism, and improve all related services," he promised.

Asia Pacific Travel LTD

North Korea Tours 2012 Highlights：：：： *An April tour that will visit the DPRK during celebrations marking the 100thbirthday of Kim Il Sung, the

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eternal President and founder of the DPRK. Not-yet-announced festivities have been in planning for several years and are expected to include an extra spectacular Arirang mass performance. These unique synchronized

acrobatic displays are listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest mass performance in the world,

featuring over 100,000 performers in the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, the largest stadium in the world, seating over 150,000 people. The name Arirang refers to a Korean folk song about two separated lovers trying to

reunite, a reference to the continued division of North and South Korea. The North Koreans believe that the highly synchronized, mass aspect of the performances reflects their national philosophy of the individual being subordinate to the group.

*An optional 3-4 day post-tours to Mt. Kuwol, Sariwon, Sinchon, Wonsan, and Kumgang. Known as the “Diamond Mountains,” Kumgang has been closed to tourists from the North since 1998 and to all tourists since 2008. APTL is able to take tourists to this area of Kumgang using the historic Kumgangsan Hotel in the resort development complex. Previously groups from the North only visited the fringes of Kumgang and overnighted in Wonsan.

*A new series of tours for intrepid travelers exploring North Koreas famous scenic mountains. Scheduled from June through September, these special tours include the difficult-to-visit dramatic and historic sites of Mt. Paektu, Mt. Chilbo, Hamhung, Wonsan, and Kumgang. Passengers will travel via charter flights from Pyongyang to the less accessible areas of the DPRK. These more adventurous itineraries will be in addition to the APTL’s “standard” offerings of monthly departures from April through November with various pre- and post- tours in China and South Korea.

The North Koreans have reconfirmed that Americans (and nationalities other than South Korean citizens), may tour the DPRK for extended visits. This is unlike past years, when Americans could only visit for 5 days at a time. In addition, North Korea has reconfirmed that these visits may come throughout the year, not just during the annual Arirang mass performance period in the fall. Unfortunately, the ban on Americans taking the train in or

out of the DPRK to China is still in effect (other nationalities, however, are allowed to take the train), resulting in slightly higher costs for Americans.

All travelers to North Korea must travel in a group – even if it is a “group of one”. Normally it is best and more economical to have at least two travelers together so that they can share the costs. All APTL DPRK tours from August through September include the Arirang synchronized mass performance.

About Asia Pacific Travel, Ltd.

Asia Pacific Travel, Ltd. is an experienced tour operator specializing in custom first-class and deluxe travel for individuals and small groups to East Asia since 1978. Each year Asia Pacific Travel has arranged custom itineraries for hundreds of outbound passengers for travel to East Asia, particularly China, Japan, North and South Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, Mongolia, and Southeast Asia.

Press Contact: Marian Goldberg, Marian Goldberg Marketing Communications

Tel: 347-559-MGMC; [email protected]

Corporate Contact: Asia Pacific Travel, Ltd., P. O. Box 350, Kenilworth, IL 60043-0350 USA (2514 Laurel Lane, Wilmette, IL 60091-2230 USA)

Tel: 1-800-262-6420, or 1-847-251-6400; Fax: 1-847-256-5601; [email protected]

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Koryo Tours is proud to be able to announce that we have now posted dates, prices, and itineraries for our tours in the first half of 2012 on our website and they are all available for booking! Read also more about the latest news and interesting updates!

1. Looking ahead to the year 2012

April 15th 2012 is a very significant day in

the DPRK-it's the 100th anniversary of the birth of eternal President Kim Il Sung and as such will be marked by large-scale celebrations and events as well as the usual festive merry-making that goes on in Pyongyang during national holidays. Although the details are not yet confirmed we expect a Mass Games to take place at that time, most likely something new and never-seen-before so we're very excited about it. As well as this we will attend some local football matches next April (having just become the first and only company ever to take tourists to see a local league match - a blog posting about this has just been made at LINK), and whatever else will be going on at the time we will get you right in the thick of it.

There are not many chances to be in a country on a day as significant as this so if you're interested in coming along please have a look at what we have to offer and drop us a line with any questions at all. Also if you'd like to book early we have a gift-pack especially for those who sign up

before July 1st for tours next year.

2011 and 2012 Tours with dates prices and itineraries can be found here

or: http://www.koryogroup.com/travel_groupTours.php

If you cannot access our website, you can view the 2011 tour itineraries here:

http://www.slideshare.net/KoryoTours/koryo-tours-scheduled-group-tours-for-2011

2. Koryo Tours 20 years!

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With ever more news coming out of North Korea and ever more people looking to visit we continue to use our 2 decades of experience to offer the very best tours available. As the only company whose staff actually make monthly visits to North Korea we're ideally placed to make this a holiday that you will never forget, and 2012 is the biggest occasion in the DPRK calendar for the last few decades, if you've been thinking about going then this could be time to get it done, with tours from 3 - 18 days we should have something for everyone, so tell your friends and we hope to see you in Pyongyang!

Political Tours

This year a new tour operator has emerged that seems to confound some of those expectations about a tour to the north. UK-based operator Political Tours has teamed up with the well-established Koryo Tours to create, (as its name would suggest), tours that are

deliberately political. Surprisingly the DPRK’s tourism officials seem happy to comply. NK

News interviewed Director of Political Tours Nicholas Wood, to find out more about the

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itinerary.

Q: What kind of destinations do you offer tours to, and what country has proved most popular so far?

A: We look at regions that are pivotal regions in international affairs such as the Middle East, the Caucasus and the Balkans. North Korea was an obvious choice, and so far it is the tour that receives the most inquiries.

Q: What kind of tourists do your tours typically attract?

A: Our clients cover a huge spectrum of people – from inner-city kids wanting to learn lessons from conflict zones, to news editors and politicians and officials who have a professional interest in a particular region. (They might belong to an NGO or a think tank for example). But now the huge majority of inquiries are coming from people who are interested in current affairs and just want a challenging or stimulating break.

Q: With so many other companies offering trips to the DPRK, what sets your tours apart from the competition?

A: While we cover some of the more conventional sites such as Mansudae and the Truce Village, both the itinerary and the speakers involved in the tour break the mold of most visits to the north. Our first tour this October is led by James Hoare, the former British diplomat who established Britain’s first diplomatic mission in Pyongyang. The itinerary also includes visits to some unlikely visitor attractions – schools, universities, a working port – in short we are attempting to see a realistic a slice of life in the north as possible. Another difference is the series of pre-tour briefings that we give our clients in Beijing before they head for Pyongyang. Participants get to hear analysis on North-South relations. NGOs brief on their work with communities in the country. Chinese analysts also give their take.

Q: In a sentence or less, why should someone interested in visiting the DPRK go on your October tour?

A: We’d like to think that these will be the best informed trips on the market, and ones that will give people as realistic a view of daily life inside the DPRK as possible.

For more information about Political Tours’ October itinerary, please visit their website.

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Korea Compass

[The purpose of this section is to provide some background knowledge, especially for people making their first trip to the DPRK. If you know something about what you are going to see beforehand you will greatly impress your hosts, not to mention other foreign visitors,

and save yourself having to listen to long-winded explanations when you really want to get down to business. Proverbs have the handy

function of offering a quick insight into the thinking and attitudes inherent in a different culture.]

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Twenty-one American soldiers refused to return to the US at the end of the Korean War. They moved to China, but by the end of the

1960s all but two had returned home. [Photo: Bettmann/CORBIS]

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Documents

DPRK Business Monthly · DPRK Business Monthly hundreds of thousands of dollars to mining companies to buy equipment and expand, and each was repaid. This summer Schulze lent an additional