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China-DPRK economic cooperation is all the rage. Whether it is sound and fury signifying nothing remains to be seen.
Yonhap reports that the two countries have (finally) begun the eminently sensible project of paving the road from Hunchun to Rason (nee Rajin-Sonbong). China-DPRK trade has a noticeable seasonal pattern, dropping quite significantly during the winter months when the weather makes passage over mountainous dirt roads hazardous. Questions remain as to whether North Korea will allow this project to spur ancillary development in North Hamgyong province, or whether, as initially reported, they will construct giant fences along each side of the road, making it, in economic terms, a tunnel from China to the sea.
In a related development, Yonhap also reports speculation that North Korea has leased a pier at Rason to “Switzerland,” a landlocked country. I doubt that the government of Switzerland is interested in leasing North Korean ports, so if anyone knows if this is for real and to what Swiss entity the report refers, let us know.
Lastly, China-DPRK cooperation may not be limited to tramsportation infrastructure: on the basis of a comment by an unnamed KITA official Arirang News reports speculation that China and North Korea have agreed to develop offshore oil fields in the West Sea near Nampo. This is not the first time that such speculation has been aired. Again, if anyone has more information, you know where to find us.
