China, NK in deal on economic zones

Jang Song-thaek

China and North Korea have agreed to accelerate the development of economic zones in the North, Beijing said Tuesday amid signs that Pyongyang is seeking to boost its economy.

Under the agreement, the two sides will establish committees to oversee the zones. It also deals with the supply of electricity and agricultural cooperation, the Chinese commerce ministry said in a statement.

They signed the deal during a meeting between China’s Commerce Minister Chen Deming and Jang Song-thaek, a powerful aide of young North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Jang is on a visit that analysts say is to shore up economic and political support.

Kim has shown signs that he will experiment with reforms since taking over after the death of his father Kim Jong-il in December. He recently told a visiting Chinese official that he was prioritizing economic development.

Beijing has been pushing its impoverished neighbor to follow its path of reform. Last year it established the Hwanggumphyong and Wihwado Economic Zone, located on two islands in the estuary of the Amnok (Yalu) River; and has boosted cooperation at the North’s Rason Economic Trade Zone in the northeast.

Under the agreement, the sides will push to make the zone at Hwanggumphyong and Wihwado an area for tourism and information technology.

The zone at Rason will “gradually develop into an advanced manufacturing base for North Korea and an international logistics and regional tourist center for Northeast Asia,” the statement said. Somnolent for years, observers expect the zone to take off soon after construction work by China, which wants to use the port there as a transport hub.

Jang, a technocrat seen as one of the most powerful men in the North, has been a key figure in setting up the zones. He is thought to have been involved in the recent ouster of the North’s army chief, a move that tightened Kim’s control over the military.

Analyst said Jang’s visit, which included a delegation of some 50 officials, would seek not only economic but political support, and could pave the way for the twenty-something Kim to visit his main benefactor in the near future. <The Korea Times/Kim Young-jin>

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