Hyundai, North Reach Tourism Agreement

North Korea and Hyundai Asan reached an agreementd to co-develop Mt. Geumgang as a tourism district on Friday.

The negotiations had been slow due to disagreements caused by the ousting of ex-Hyundai Asan vice president Kim Yoon-kyu.

The Mt. Geumgang tourism business will be revived under the agreement, and the prospects of new tourism projects in the Gaesong regions and Mt. Baekdu will be increased.

Hyundai Asan also agreed to pay $400,000 to compensate for a car accident caused by a staff member of a collaborating company.

Hyundai Asan President Yoon Man-Joon released statements describing this agreement on Friday at a South Korean customs and immigration office after a three-day trip to North Korea.

The North, until now, had called Yoon a “schemer,” refused to recognize him as a negotiator, and disallowed his entry into North Korea. It seems that the North has decided to recognize him as a representative following these talks, however.

Yoon announced that a field investigation of the Naegeum River regions that was agreed on by Hyun Jeong-eun, chairman of the Hyundai Group, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il last July will take place in March or April.

Young-Hae Choi yhchoi65@donga.com