North Korea a seaside resort prohibits foreigners weeks after opening

North Korea has announced that its newly discovered seaside resort will not receive foreign tourists.

The coastal tourist zone of Vonson Kalma, discovered on July 1, has been declared a key part of North Korean leader Kim Jong -un’s ambitions to strengthen tourism.

At the beginning of its opening, the resort was promoted as an attraction for both locals and foreigners. But this week, the North Korean Tourism Website announcement is said to be “temporarily” not allowed to visit.

Last week, it was reported that the first Russian tourists arrived at the Wonson resort – about the same time when Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met Kim in the city.

Lavrov welcomed marine development as a “good tourist attraction” and said he hoped it would become popular with the Russians, AFP reported. The two countries are intended to launch direct flights between Moscow and Pyongyang by the end of the month.

Previously, a Russian guide told NK News that they had planned a few more trips to the resort in the coming months.

Vonsan, a city along the east coast of North Korea, is the home of some of the rockets in the country and a large sea complex. And there, Kim spent much of his youth, among the festive villas belonging to the elites of the country.

The new seaside resort lined 4 km (2.5 miles) from the beach with hotels, restaurants, shopping malls and a water park. It has a capacity of about 20,000, according to state media.

However, as the resort began construction in 2018, human rights groups protest against the alleged abuse of their workers. They indicate reports that people are forced to work for long hours to complete the massive project, under difficult conditions and inadequate compensation.

The Russian ambassadors attended the resort graduation ceremony on June 24, along with Kim and his family.

Last year, North Korea allowed Russian tourists to visit North Korea after a long -standing tourism stop during the pandemic.

In February, North Korea also began to receive tourists from the West, including Australia, France, Germany and the United Kingdom. He sharply stopped tourism weeks later, without saying why.