Window of North Korea`s Special Train Broken

North Korea`s National Defense Commission Chairman Kim Jong-Il returned to Moscow after his two-day visit to St. Petersburg yesterday morning. Chairman Kim Jong-Il visited a cruiser called `Abrora`, which announced the beginning of Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. Chairman Kim will ride on the special train today to return to North Korea.

- Sunday night: Right after Chairman Kim`s special train took off Moscow toward St. Petersburg, it was found that a window in the first car was broken. Russia`s private NTV reported on Monday that the first car was connected by the Russian government, and the windows of this car were not bullet proof. Russian attendants were riding in the first car.

A Russian railroad official said that ``although a window was broken, it was not confirmed whether anybody intentionally threw a stone into it.`` The broken window was already replaced when the train arrived in St. Petersburg on Monday morning.

- When Chairman Kim visited Baltica Beer factory, the biggest beer factory in Europe, in St. Petersburg on Monday, he changed the schedule and stayed there for an hour and a half, showing his interest in brewing process, equipments, and secrets of taste. Chairman Kim announced a plan to build a beer factory in North Korea importing British equipments, and asked for technical support to Baltica factory, said the factory officials.

- Chairman Kim was provided sumptuous food, such as the `long-horned beetle meet` and `lobsters` in the special train, reported the Russian Novosti Press. A Russian official, who was invited to the special train for dinner said that live lobsters were cooked and the `long-horned beetle meat`, which Chairman Kim often eats, was donkey meat.

- Belgium`s daily newspaper La Livre Belgique reported on Monday that Chairman Kim`s visit to Russia has caused tremendous inconvenience to Russian people due to the security operation. The newspaper said that 100 major train routes were delayed 4-8 hours, and 150 suburban routes were cancelled causing inconvenience to 250,000 Russian people. Moreover, the day when Chairman Kim arrived in Moscow, there was heavy traffic in downtown due to the traffic control. The newspaper reported that the Kremlin had to send out an apology for the chaos caused by Chairman Kim`s visit through the TV broadcasting.

kimkihy@donga.com