’Pyongyang sees boom of European culture’

By Kim Young-jin

Pizza, espresso and other cultural items from Europe are gaining popularity in Pyongyang despite North Korea’s ongoing economic and food struggles, a report said.

Japan-based Kyodo News, which operates a bureau in the North Korean capital, reported that European-style drinks and cuisine were increasingly making their way into trendy eateries there along with brand name European fashion items.

The “mini European boom” comes amid reports of some changes in the isolated Stalinist regime but also estimates that 6 million of its people are starving.

Pyongyang has long maintained control over its people in large part by blocking access to information from and travel to the outside world. Still, reports suggest that Pyongyang is slowly modernizing, with more residents owning cell phones and some buildings receiving facelifts.

According to Kyodo, one hotel cafe had made a splash by introducing Italian espresso drawn out of an imported espresso machine, attracting both foreigners and locals, it said. One woman photographed by the agency was seen selling name brand Italian shoes and clothes.

Accessories such as bags, ties, watches and cosmetics from design houses in Italy, France, Switzerland and other European countries are also gaining popularity, it said.

One European diplomat, who wished not to be named, said such items would likely have to be smuggled in due to bans on luxury items being exported to the Stalinist state sanctioned for its nuclear and missile tests.

Some observers said the boom was in part attributable to the fact that most European Union countries have diplomatic ties with the North and therefore a greater presence in Pyongyang than the United States, with which its relations remain chilly.

Ordinary citizens more than likely have no access to such restaurants and shops as Pyongyang is highly concentrated with North Korea’s elite class ― those that hold high-level government positions.

Analysts say efforts by the North to spruce up its capital stem from its need to keep its elite class happy as leader Kim Jong-il passes power to his youngest son, Jong-un.

The EU has committed $14.5 million in aid to the North after sending an assessment team into the impoverished regime. Washington has yet to decide on whether it would provide aid.

Seoul recently offered to send flood relief northward, including medicine and daily necessities, but turned down a request from Pyongyang to provide flour and cement.

One European diplomat based in Seoul, who wished not to be named, said it should come as little surprise that European culture, especially Italian food, was spreading there.

“The cuisine is not hard to imitate and it’s relatively easy to operate a restaurant. The food is popular in the South and the rest of the world, and it shouldn’t be much different in North Korea,” he said.

“European culture is very appreciated in Pyongyang,” he said, adding that European films are sought for the North’s biannual international film festival.