- Russia-North Korea tour held
- Complaints about old aircraft
- Relations between leaders strengthen
Even between their respective leaders, relations between North Korea and Russia continue to improve during the four-day tour. Vladimir Putin presented Kim Jong Un with an opulent limousine earlier this week.
Although few individuals can claim to have visited North Korea. A private tour led by Russia this month provided insight into a highly clandestine nation that is largely isolated from the rest of the world.
On a four-day excursion, approximately one hundred Russians were among the first to visit the country since the pandemic, and the North Koreans put on a show, including accordion performances and vacant ski resorts, transported by the country’s sole airline.
However, the visitors’ photographs and videos present an alternative account of the conditions inside North Korea that are in direct opposition to the official account. They show a nation that has suffered food shortages and international sanctions for decades.
The excursion commenced with an Air Koryo flight from Vladivostok, Russia, to Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. The airline is operated by North Korea and consists primarily of aging aircraft manufactured in Russia.
The group reportedly included thirteen school-aged children, influencers, vacationers, and journalists, as stated by one of the attendees.
“Everything is falling apart” during takeoff
Russian media outlets depicted the voyage flawlessly, but tourists complained as soon as they boarded the plane.
One traveller expressed on Telegram, “The aircraft is antiquated and reeks of mothballs.” The 41-year-old aircraft “reminds me of something that was preserved in a closet for an extremely long time before being exposed to light.”
Another traveller expressed dissatisfaction on Instagram, stating, “Even fastening the belt was difficult.”
Simply put, the same traveller concluded, “Everything is falling apart.”
“Avoid staring at the tourists”; arrival of accordions and handicrafts
The group was transported from Pyongyang to the western outskirts of the city to the Mangyongdae Children’s Palace. Where they observed uniformed children performing a concert, engaging in crafts, and reciting accordion music.
Tourist Elena Bychkova uploaded video evidence demonstrating that while the children entertained the visitors. A massive screen in the background alternated between images of North Korean soldiers and a mountain.
One tourist commented on the scene’s apparent restriction by sharing a video of children weaving in a classroom and asserting, “The children were apparently instructed to sit quietly and, in general, to avoid staring at the tourists.”
Two enormous statues of former Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, the Juche Tower, and a monument commemorating Soviet contributions to the Second World War were also visited by the party.
The delegation was accommodated at the Yanggakdo International Hotel in Pyongyang.
When travel influencer Ilya Voskresensky inquired as to why they were not permitted to depart the location, he was allegedly informed, “because we don’t know Korean and there may be complications.”
Tickets were purchased for $750 from Vostok Intour, but the visit and itinerary are unknown.
Personal escorts and “patriotic music” on the slopes
Guests were flown to Wonsan from Pyongyang, where they were transferred to the Masikryong ski resort, which was inaugurated in 2014 as an effort by the country to promote international travel.
Upon arrival, Mr. Voskresensky observed the ski facilities’ distinctively North Korean characteristics, remarking, “Various propaganda videos are being shown on the large screen, while patriotic music is being played on the slope.”
The party appears to have been accompanied by minders even while skiing. Mr. Voskresensky wrote alongside a video of a man skiing behind him and his companion, “This is our personal escort; this is not paranoia.”
As evidence of North Korea’s ongoing capability to procure products from the West, Sasha Danilenko uploaded a resort photograph. It featured her atop a Ski-Doo snowmobile manufactured in Canada.
Following their two-day stay at the ski resort, the group descended back to Vladivostok.
Although guests were unimpressed, the alliance is expanding.
Yulia Meshkova, a tourist, informed her followers that she would no longer be returning for moral and ethical concerns.
She described the state as a “totalitarian dictatorship” in a separate post, concluding that it “does not represent tourist value” as a nation.
Relations between Russia and North Korea, as well as their respective leaders, appear to be rapidly improving. This is part of a growing pariah alliance, coinciding with the tour.
Mr. Putin was visited by Kim Jong Un in Russia in September of last year.
On Tuesday, Vladimir Putin gave Kim Jong Un a luxurious Russian limousine, which Kim “liked” on his previous trip to Russia. Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, referred to North Korea as a “close neighbour.”
The United States accused Russia in January of employing munitions sourced from North Korea in Ukraine. Despite their respective denials of engaging in arms transactions, Moscow and Pyongyang pledged to strengthen military ties last year.
