ID :
203401
Thu, 08/25/2011 - 07:22
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/203401
The shortlink copeid
N. Korea Committed to Protecting Foreign Investments: Scholar
YANJI Aug. 21 (Yonhap) -- North Korea is committed to protecting foreign investment made at the Rason special economic zone as part of its efforts to attract more overseas support, a North Korea scholar said on Aug. 21.
In a lecture given in Yanji in China's Jilin Province, Kimilsung University professor Kim Cheol-woong claimed under North Korea's Constitution and the 2008 foreign investment law, foreign investors' rights and privileges will be strictly respected.
He said Pyongyang had passed additional acts specifically concerning the Rason region on the country's northeastern coast that clearly demonstrate the socialist country's efforts to protect investment rights, permit full repatriation of generated profits and prohibit the seizure and nationalization of foreign assets.
The North designated Rason as a special economic zone in 1991 and has since tried to develop it into a regional transportation hub due to its close proximity to both China and Russia. But no major progress has been made so far, mainly due to bad industrial and transportation infrastructure. In June, North Korea and China broke ground on a joint project to develop Rason as an economic and trade zone, while Russia signed a long-term deal to lease part of the port for its companies.
Kim added that in the event of a natural disaster or other uncontrollable developments, North Korea would fully compensate investors.
Experts at the lecture said that special laws protecting foreign investment rights were announced last year, but moves to highlight them again can be seen as a sign that Pyongyang is making an effort to attract foreign businesses to revive its moribund economy.
It may also be an effort to assure outsiders that, despite the recent seizure of South Korean business holdings in the scenic Mount Kumgang region, the country wants to attract more foreign investors.
The investment in Mount Kumgang, estimated to be worth 300 billion won (US$276 million), was launched in 1998 as part of the inter-Korean reconciliation effort that began under former President Kim Dae-hung. The program, however, was suspended in 2008 after North Korean guards shot and killed a South Korean tourist.
In a lecture given in Yanji in China's Jilin Province, Kimilsung University professor Kim Cheol-woong claimed under North Korea's Constitution and the 2008 foreign investment law, foreign investors' rights and privileges will be strictly respected.
He said Pyongyang had passed additional acts specifically concerning the Rason region on the country's northeastern coast that clearly demonstrate the socialist country's efforts to protect investment rights, permit full repatriation of generated profits and prohibit the seizure and nationalization of foreign assets.
The North designated Rason as a special economic zone in 1991 and has since tried to develop it into a regional transportation hub due to its close proximity to both China and Russia. But no major progress has been made so far, mainly due to bad industrial and transportation infrastructure. In June, North Korea and China broke ground on a joint project to develop Rason as an economic and trade zone, while Russia signed a long-term deal to lease part of the port for its companies.
Kim added that in the event of a natural disaster or other uncontrollable developments, North Korea would fully compensate investors.
Experts at the lecture said that special laws protecting foreign investment rights were announced last year, but moves to highlight them again can be seen as a sign that Pyongyang is making an effort to attract foreign businesses to revive its moribund economy.
It may also be an effort to assure outsiders that, despite the recent seizure of South Korean business holdings in the scenic Mount Kumgang region, the country wants to attract more foreign investors.
The investment in Mount Kumgang, estimated to be worth 300 billion won (US$276 million), was launched in 1998 as part of the inter-Korean reconciliation effort that began under former President Kim Dae-hung. The program, however, was suspended in 2008 after North Korean guards shot and killed a South Korean tourist.
