By Lee Tae-hoon
Staff reporter
In response to Seoul's request to restrict tourist visits to Mt. Geumgan in North Korea, Beijing said it "respects" South Korea's business rights ― as per international standards ― at its suspended tourism operation at the scenic resort, a government official said Friday.
"In a response to a letter from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) earlier this month, the National Tourism Administration of China said Beijing respects relevant laws and hopes that issues involving the mountain resort will be resolved through inter-Korean dialogue," the official said.
Last month, Culture Minister Yu In-chon asked the Chinese tourism administration to refrain from sending tourists to certain areas of the resort, including Outer Geumgang, expressing concerns that they may use facilities frozen by North Korean authorities and hiking courses owned or developed through Hyundai Asan's investments.
Yu told China that the North's seizure of South Korean assets was in violation of inter-Korean contracts.
The Ministry of Unification said it will closely monitor the situation and urge the North to honor its agreement with South Korean tour partner Hyundai Asan, to which it gave the exclusive rights to the mountain tourism project.
"North Korea should guarantee that Hyundai Asan engages in free business activity at the Mount Geumgang area and protects its investment assets," spokeswoman Lee Jong-joo said.
She said the North should abide by the contract between tour operators, an agreement between the South and North Korean governments, and international practices.
However, it remains to be seen whether China will immediately ban its tourist agencies from selling tour programs to Mt. Geumgang.
Several tour agencies have begun selling tour packages that include an excursion to the scenic mountain since May 27.
A Beijing-based tour agency named Koryo Tours is also selling Mt. Geumgang tour packages to Westerners.
In April, North Korea seized, or froze, South Korean properties in the resort area and scrapped a tourism deal with Hyundai Asan.
Tours to Mt. Geumgang by South Koreans began in late 1998 as a symbol of reconciliation between the two Koreas but were halted in July 2008, when a tourist was shot dead by a North Korean soldier.
Some 2 million South Koreans had visited the resort over the past decade before the suspension of operations.
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