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Government tells South Koreans not to eat at North Korean restaurants

February 17, 2016
North Korean restaurants in Dandong, China (Yonhap)

North Korean restaurants in Dandong, China (Yonhap)

South Korea is looking to make its citizens’ stomachs the latest front in its standoff with North Korea.

The government in Seoul is telling South Koreans not to eat at the North Korean-run restaurants found in many cities around the world. The goal is to stop money from helping fund Pyongyang’s pursuit of nuclear warheads and missiles.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that South Korean travelers, diplomats and overseas residents have been advised not to go to North Korean restaurants, although such visits are not illegal.

There are an estimated 130 Pyongyang-owned restaurants in 12 countries that are believed to be a major source of income for the cash-strapped North Korea, ministry officials said.

The North Korean restaurants have sprung up since the 1990s. Some 100 of them are in China while others are found in Russia, Cambodia, Mongolia and Vietnam ― all of them Pyongyang’s Cold War allies.

In 2012, North Korea’s first and only restaurant in Europe opened in Amsterdam although it closed after a few months. Another one was opened at the end of 2013.

Analysts say Pyongyang probably won’t suffer much, as many more Chinese and other nationalities than South Koreans frequent these restaurants.

Washington and Seoul have been calling for more stringent financial and trade sanctions against Pyongyang following its recent nuclear test and rocket launch.

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*AP materials were used in this article.

One Comment

  1. Horangih Gomtoki

    February 17, 2016 at 10:12 AM

    How about telling US military occupiers to stop fuc*ing Korean women and using them as whores? How about telling Korean women who feel ashamed of their natural Korean looks to stop getting plastic surgery to look white? How about telling Korean people to stop working for Israel that colonizes Palestine like Japan once colonized Korea? How about telling America to stop spreading homosexual propaganda in Korea as it goes against Korean values and morality? How about telling Koreans to stop imitating black ghetto rap culture that celebrates gangsterism, thuggery, and degrades women into whores?

    Yes, North Korea is ruled by a nasty regime, but it’s funny how South Koreans prefer to hate fellow Koreans than challenge American military-industrial complex that still occupies Korea and uses Korean women as their sexual property.

    Reply