North Korea considering possibility of launching maritime route from port of Goseong to Vladivostok

VLADIVOSTOK. Dec 15 (Interfax) - North Korea is considering the possibility of organizing a maritime route from the North Korean port of Goseong to Vladivostok through the ports of Rajin, Chongjin and Wonsan, Kim Ryong-yong, executive board member of the Korean Tourism and Investment Development Association, said in a statement.

The press service of the Primorsk Territory government has reported that the relative parties discussed issues of expanding cooperation between the two countries during the visit of Primorye Governor Oleg Kozhemyako to Pyongyang at the beginning of this week.

"In terms of water-borne transport, we want to extend a route from Vladivostok to the port of Goseong through the ports of Rajin, Chongjin and Wonsan. There are already air connections between Vladivostok and Pyongyang, though Air Koryo [North Korea's state-owned national airline] should be able to organize additional flights when tourists increase," Kim Ryong-yong was quoted as saying by the press service.

Kim Ryong-yong has not specified whether cargo service would be organized along the route in addition to passenger service.

There is currently no direct maritime connection between Primorye and North Korea. Meantime, there is a railway connection from the Khasan station in Primorye to the port of Rajin, though only for freight traffic.