North Korea Dismantles South Korean Assets at Geumgangsan Again... Gosong Port Raw Fish Restaurant in Ruins

Opened in December 2003... Hyundai Asan-Owned Restaurant
Kim Jong Un: "Disgusting and Unpleasant Southern Facility"

Photo by Ministry of Unification

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hee-jun] It has been confirmed that North Korea has additionally dismantled South Korean facilities in Geumgangsan.

On the 18th, Voice of America (VOA) reported that an analysis of satellite images from Planet Labs revealed that North Korea dismantled the Goseonghang raw fish restaurant building within the Geumgangsan tourist district.

The Goseonghang raw fish restaurant, opened in December 2003 near the northern port of the tourist district, is a 236-seat restaurant. It was owned by Hyundai Asan and operated by Ilyeon Investment.

According to the satellite images presented by VOA, the Goseonghang raw fish restaurant building, which usually had a distinct brown roof, now appears in a bright gray color, likely made up of concrete debris.

The completion of the building's dismantling by North Korea is estimated to have occurred in mid-last month. The satellite image dated August 28 shows the building’s brown roof clearly, but the image from September 1 shows part of the roof seemingly torn off, revealing gray areas. By September 8, the main building site is covered with concrete debris, and by September 24, even the shape of the annex building disappears.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, starting in March this year, North Korea began dismantling the Haegumgang Hotel owned by Hyundai Asan, and in April, dismantled eight lodging buildings at the Geumgangsan golf course operated by the South Korean resort company Ananti.

Additionally, the North Korea specialist media NK News reported that since August, there have been movements presumed to be dismantling at South Korean government-owned facilities such as the separated families reunion center, Onjeonggak, Guryong Village, and Geumgang Pension Town.

In fact, last month, it was confirmed that the roof of the cultural center building, in which the Korea Tourism Organization had invested a large sum, was torn off. The cultural center, Onjeonggak, Guryong Village, and Geumgang Pension Town have been completely dismantled, and it is known that the only South Korean assets still maintaining intact building forms are some parts such as the separated families reunion center and Oncheon Village.

Since Kim Jong-un, General Secretary of the Workers' Party of North Korea, ordered the dismantling of South Korean facilities in this area, the remaining buildings are expected to be dismantled soon. Previously, after inspecting Geumgangsan in October 2019, Kim had instructed, "Remove all the shabby South Korean facilities that make one feel unpleasant just by looking at them."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.