South Korea restores tours to Panmunjom

Foreign tourists visit the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)

Yonhap news agency on May 15 quoted South Korean officials as saying that the South Korean Unification Ministry plans to resume a tour program to the Panmunjom truce village in the inter-Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) this week, after suspending it until the end of 2023 due to military tensions.

" The government plans to resume the on-site tour to Panmunjom on Friday (May 16), through a special tour program after it was postponed for public safety reasons," a ministry official said.

The South Korean government initially suspended the Panmunjom tour in July 2023 after US soldier Travis King crossed into North Korea during a tour of the joint security area near the demilitarized zone, leading to heightened military tensions.

In November 2023, the tour was partially resumed, but was completely suspended again about a week later, when North Korean soldiers on duty in the North Korean side of Panmunjom began carrying heavy weapons, increasing military tensions at the border area.

Panmunjom Village on the inter-Korean border

Since then, only foreigners, including Korean War veterans, have been allowed to visit Panmunjom through an occasional tour program, while the site remains off-limits to South Koreans.

As part of the upcoming tour resumption program, the first group of 17 government officials and executives from state-owned companies, including those taking a state-run unification education course, is scheduled to visit Panmunjom on May 16.

However, the initial resumption will be limited to policy-related visitors, while the timing of the reopening of tours to the public will be determined later, based on safety conditions.

According to Khanh An (TNO)

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/han-quoc-khoi-phuc-tour-du-lich-den-ban-mon-diem-post323228.html