... tourist zone in North Korea.
As you may have guessed it, it is not for average North Korean. It is primarily for Russian and other tourists.
The complex, described by KCNA as a "world-class cultural resort," stretches along 2.5 miles of coastline and features houses, hotels and hostels for nearly 20,000 people. Attractions include "sea-bathing service facilities, various sports and recreation facilities and commercial and public catering facilities fully equipped with all conditions ... for providing the beauty of the scenic spot on the east coast in all seasons," KCNA said. In remarks at the opening ceremony, Kim called the completion of the resort one of the country's "greatest successes this year."
This all coincided with the resumption of the direct train service between Moscow and North Korea. So, depending on the accommodations, which, I assume, will be very good for a very reasonable price, Wonsan has some future. And a huge benefit for North Korean economy, with those pesky Russians spending their Rubles there, not to forget, of course, Chinese and their Yuans. We'll see. In related news, North Korea now supplies work force for Yelabuga massive UAV production and more than 5 thousand North Korean Army sappers are being deployed to the SMO zone to help demine NATO's mines.