As North Korea’s human and material exchanges are gradually progressing with China and Russia, it was spotted at the end of last year that China expanded its regular facilities at the border customs near Ssangdubong, Millyeong in Yanggang-do, North Korea. It is evaluated that China conducted the related construction in line with North Korea’s preparation and progress to resume the once-suspended Baekdu Mountain foreign currency-earning tourism business ahead of the opening of the border in the New Year.
◆ Promotion of Baekdu Mountain Tourism Special Zone
Since the Kim Jong-un regime came in, North Korea has ambitiously pursued the development of the Baekdu Mountain tourism special zone for foreign tourists to generate foreign currency earnings in the mid-2010s. On April 22, 2015, North Korea announced a decree to develop the Samjiyon Mubong Workers’ District into an “International Tourism Special Zone,” and it was decided that Hualong City, Jilin Province, China would invest in full and have exclusive operating rights. However, the investment was subsequently suspended, and it has been neglected until now due to UN sanctions against North Korea and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Samjiyon Airport was even developed for Baekdu Mountain tourism. During the South-North Summit in 2018, President Moon Jae-in’s delegation visited Baekdu Mountain through this airport, and the Air Force 2 aircraft (Boeing 737-300) used the direct route between Samjiyon Airport and Seoul Airport, which took about 2 hours at the time.
◆ Samjiyon North-China Border Customs
Several facilities around Baekdu Mountain were built for state propaganda, claiming that Kim Jong-il was born and raised there, and the sacred site Ssangdubong, Millyeong, among them, is close to the border in Samjiyon, Yanggang-do. North Korean customs and Chinese customs are facing each other in this location, and there is an 830-meter-long (0.52-mile) road connecting the customs.
Meanwhile, a number of ski resorts have been built in Samjiyon. Although they were originally built for generating foreign currency earnings targeting Baekdu Mountain tourists, they are now being used for winter military training of the People’s Army ski troops. Kim Jong-un, who loves skiing, has personally attended the winter training of the ski troops. The course of the Samjiyon ski resort spans an 8km (5 miles) section from North Korean customs to Shinmuseong Workers’ District with a width of about 85m (279 feet), whereas there are several large and small ski resorts in Samjiyon, the longest of which is 11km (6.8 miles).
◆ Construction of the Customs-Trade Zone
A new trade zone facility has been expanded at the Chinese customs facing the North Korean border. The trade zone is believed to have started construction in March 2023, and the site measures 335m (1,099 feet) in width and 475m (1,558 feet) in length, with 14.4ha (35.6 acres) in size. The satellite photos show several related facilities, where A 40-meter-wide (131-foot) service road has also been opened to connect the trade zone to the existing route.
Recently, as North Korea is increasing exchanges with China and Russia amid movements to open the border, China has newly expanded the trade zone at the North-China border customs. Recently, China has extended the trading zone at the North-China border customs, coinciding with North Korea’s increased communication with China and Russia amid efforts to open the border. Although the Samjiyon North Korean customs show no unusual trends, it is believed that the intention is to draw Chinese ski visitors in the New Year to revive the previously suspended foreign currency-earning tourism business at Baekdu Mountain.
By. Sung Hak Jung
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