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North Korea says giant tourist beach resort to open in June 2025

The resort, expected to attract Russians, is seen as a big step to developing tourism.

By Taejun Kang for RFA
2024.12.30

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- North Korea's long-stalled Kalma beach resort will finally open in June 2025, said its state media, citing leader Kim Jong Un as saying the project is the "first big step" in advancing the country's tourism.

Launched in 2014, the project was scheduled to open by April 2019. However, it encountered numerous setbacks, including design modifications, material shortages caused by international sanctions, and disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The development on North Korea's east coast is "the first big step" in advancing its tourist industry, said Kim, as cited by the Korea Central News Agency, or KCNA, ordering "proactively exploiting the tourist resources in other regions."

Kim said development of the tourism industry "will open up a new realm of socialist cultural construction and bring about another motive force for promoting regional rejuvenation and national economic growth."

The tourist area will be open for visitors from June, according to KCNA.

KCNA released photos of Kim's latest inspection with his daughter, believed to be named Ju Ae, accompanying him on the trip.

This was her first public appearance since October, when she attended an intercontinental ballistic missile test.

Images showed Ju Ae, as tall as his father, walking down a beach with her arm linked with Kim's and touring hotel facilities. Photos also show Ju Ae listening to officials' briefing with her father.

South Korea's spy agency said in July that Kim was preparing Ju Ae to succeed him, though the selection was not final.

Media reports suggest that the tourist resort is aimed at Russian visitors.

North Korea was closed to foreign tourists for just over four years after it sealed its borders in January 2020 to try to keep COVID-19 at bay, until recently when it partially opened its border, mainly for Russian tourists.

In November, Moscow and Pyongyang reached a new agreement for expanding economic cooperation, including more holidays for each other's citizens.

Russia's Tass news agency reported at the time the agreement was to increase charter flights between the neighbors to promote tourism.

Russia and North Korea have moved noticeably closer over the past year or more amid widespread suspicion that North Korea has supplied conventional weapons to Russia for its war in Ukraine in return for military and economic assistance. Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

Up to 12,000 North Korean soldiers are in Russia to support its war efforts against Ukraine in the Kursk region, Ukraine and the U.S. say. Ukraine has reported more than 3,000 casualties among them while South Korea estimates at least 1,100 North Koreans have been killed or wounded.

Neither Russia nor North Korea have acknowledged that North Korean soldiers are even involved in the fighting in Kursk, let alone made any comment about casualties.

Edited by RFA Staff.

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