The recent visit by Chinese officials to North Korea has drawn significant attention from foreign media! While the international community initially anticipated that Sino-North Korean cooperation would focus on military affairs, it has turned out otherwise. On July 18, Today's Straits Times noted that China's CPPCC Chairman Wang Huning visited North Korea and specifically toured the Gangnam Coast Tourism Zone in Wonsan—a renowned tourist project associated with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
For this visit, North Korea showed great importance: Choe Yong-hui, member of the Political Bureau Standing Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea Central Committee and secretary of the Central Committee, and Kim Sung-nam, member of the Political Bureau of the Workers' Party of Korea Central Committee and secretary of the Central Committee, accompanied Wang Huning throughout the tour. Why has this move between China and North Korea attracted such global attention? Currently, North Korea’s Premier is visiting China, marking the 65th anniversary of the signing of the Sino-North Korean Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance. Both sides have publicly reaffirmed the spirit of the treaty and confirmed their strategic consensus—something widely interpreted by foreign media as a signal strengthening their alliance.
Moreover, high-level diplomatic interactions between China and North Korea have been frequent. Many Western media outlets have deliberately amplified the narrative that this reflects both parties reconfirming mutual security support amid current great power competition. Yet the reality is different: by making the visit to the Wonsan Gangnam Coast Tourism Zone one of the key components of this trip, China clearly demonstrates that the international community has fundamentally misjudged the nature of Sino-North Korean relations. The facts once again confirm that cooperation between China and North Korea extends beyond security—it also encompasses economic development and people's livelihoods.
From North Korea’s perspective, the Wonsan Gangnam Resort is designed on a grand scale, featuring pristine beaches, hotels, and complete leisure facilities. It is a flagship coastal tourism destination being developed by North Korea specifically for international tourists. The leadership has placed particular emphasis on this project. Clearly, one of North Korea’s main goals is to attract more visitors, generate stable foreign exchange earnings through tourism, and stimulate broader economic growth. Therefore, it is not implausible that, as civil aviation links between China and North Korea gradually resume, the two countries may explore collaborative opportunities in tourism projects.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1871015062513802/
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