Moon says Kumgangsan tours cannot continue in past form

President Moon Jae-in said Friday that tours to North Korea’s Kumgangsan cannot be revived in the form they took before they were discontinued.

The comment came hours after the Ministry of Unification revealed that the North had informed the concerned South Korean parties of its intentions to remove facilities from the mountain resort. 

(Yonhap)

“(The North Korea’s demands) could go against public sentiment, and such elements may damage inter-Korean relations,” Moon said at a meeting with the Cheong Wa Dae press corps.

Saying that although tourism to North Korea is not affected by UN Security Council sanctions, factors related to payment makes the resumption of tourism difficult.

“Payment for tourism being given to North Korea could violate the sanctions. In other words, there are difficulties in resuming tourism in the past form due to the sanctions.”

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)