South Korean tours to Mount Kumgang in the North were long seen as a symbol of cooperation. But with Seoul unwilling to defy US sanctions on Pyongyang, the tourist project has been on hold for over a decade.
Image: picture-alliance/Yonhapnews
Advertisement
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered the demolition of South Korean-made tourist facilities and buildings on Mount Kumgang, the country's official news agency reported Wednesday.
Kim had visited the resort and described its facilities as "shabby" and "lacking national character," according to Pyongyang's Korean Central News Agency.
He said that the "unpleasant-looking facilities" needed to be rebuilt in a modern way which "go well with the natural scenery of Mount Kumgang."
The leader described the facilities as "built like makeshift tents in a disaster-stricken area or isolation wards," the North Korean news agency added.
Kim Jong Un described the buildings as "makeshift"Image: picture-alliance/Yonhapnews
Uncertain intentions
Seoul had stopped tours to the site in 2008 after a tourist was shot dead. However Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in vowed to restart trips to the site following talks last year.
There were plans for tourists to begin visiting the mountain again but sanctions are making this difficultImage: picture-alliance/AP Photo/D. Alangkara
Lee Sang-min, spokesman of Seoul's Unification Ministry, said the South will "actively defend the property rights of our people."
He said he planned to accept any proposed talks by North Korea over the facilities.
Kim Jong Un, however, said it was a "mistaken idea" to view the tourist attraction as a symbol of relations between the North and South.
"We will always welcome our compatriots from the South if they want to come to Mount Kumgang after it is wonderfully built as the world-level tourist destination," Kim added.
The tourist project on Mount Kumgang was built after decades of hostilities during the Korean War.
South Koreans began visiting the mountain in 1998 by sea, and from 2003 by land, until tours were stopped in 2008.
'Handshake for peace' – Trump crosses into North Korea
US President Trump and North Korean leader Kim have met once again, this time in the Demilitarized Zone. In a largely symbolic meeting, Trump and Kim hailed their personal close relationship amid stalled nuclear talks.
Image: Reuters/U.S. Network Pool
Third Kim-Trump meeting
It was the third meeting between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un in just over a year. The first Trump-Kim summit took place in Singapore in June last year. A meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, was held in February 2019. Both meetings failed to provide a clear roadmap for North Korea's denuclearization.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/B. Smialowski
Making history
Trump made history on June 30 with his latest encounter with Kim. He's the first sitting US president to visit the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that divides South and North Korea. Trump briefly crossed into North Korea as he shook hands with Kim. He said he was "proud to step over the line."
Image: AFP/Getty Images/B. Smialowski
Watching over the North
Prior to his meeting with Kim, Trump flew to the DMZ with South Korean President Moon Jae-in. The US president met with South Korean and American troops as he watched over North Korea from a military post in the DMZ. US presidents in the past have visited American troops on the South Korean side but not set foot in the DMZ.
Image: Reuters/K. Lamarque
'Great friendship'
From calling Kim Jong Un "little rocket man" to someone he has a "certain chemistry" with, Trump has come a long way in his dealing with North Korea. On June 30, he once again emphasized his personal ties with the North Korean dictator. Kim, too, hailed his "wonderful" relationship with Trump, saying the latest meeting would enable nuclear talks.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/B. Smialowski
'In no rush'
Washington and Pyongyang blame each other for the impasse over nuclear talks, but Trump is hopeful for a breakthrough. Although his previous two meetings with the North Korean leader didn't yield any result, Trump said he was "in no rush" to defuse tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
Image: picture-alliance/Yonhapnews Agency
Regime survival
Experts have warned that North Korea may never agree to fully give up its nuclear ambitions, which they say Pyongyang views as vital for regime survival. In March, new satellite imagery suggested that North Korea started rebuilding a rocket launch site before Kim and Trump's Vietnam summit in Feruary. The site had been dismantled last year as part of Kim's denuclearization pledge.
