North Korea stops tourist visas as republic’s 70th anniversary approaches
Block on visitor visas for foreigners expected to remain in place until the anniversary on September 9
North Korea has stopped processing tourist visas for foreigners ahead of a high-profile anniversary next month, according to a China-based tour operator.
The measure follows reports that Pyongyang had suspended visits by Chinese tour groups as it prepares to mark the 70th anniversary of the foundation of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as the country is officially known.
Koryo Tours, a popular agency among Western tourists seeking to visit the North, said on its website it had been “informed on 13 August by our partners in Pyongyang that they had been instructed from above that all tourist visa applications currently under way are to be frozen”.
It was not given a reason for the freeze, the company said, but was told it would apply until the anniversary on September 9.
“This suggests to us that ... a higher power in the country is simply pressing pause on tourism until it is clear to them who is coming in such delegations and how many people,” it added.
Pyongyang has previously celebrated the date lavishly with military parades or mass games involving thousands of people performing acrobatic choreography in unison, and is expected this time to hold its first mass games for five years.
