N. Korean restaurants in Cambodia struggle following int'l sanctions

Published : Feb 14, 2017 - 13:59 Updated : Feb 14, 2017 - 13:59

North Korean restaurants have been floundering in Cambodia as the South Korean community in the country has avoided them amid the implementation of UN sanctions aimed at halting Pyongyang's nuclear and missile development, industry sources said Tuesday.

According to the sources, one North Korean restaurant after another has folded. Also, the sanctions have prevented one of the restaurants from selling kimchi through local shopping malls.

This provided photo shows a North Korean restaurant in Cambodia that has closed. (Yonhap)

Cambodia hosts the biggest number of North Korean restaurants except for China. Ten restaurants from the North have opened since 2003, when Pyongyang Cold Noodle Restaurant was launched in Phnom Penh. Half of them, however, were closed as of the second half of last year.

The noodle restaurant specializing in "naengmyeon," or cold buckwheat noodles, has ceased to offer kimchi to two shopping malls operated by Japan's retail giant Aeon and a Hong Kong-Cambodia joint venture.

A source said the two shopping malls have decided not to deal with North Korean-made foodstuff due to anti-North Korean sentiment, adding, "the annual sales from the malls are not so big at about $20,000. But it goes to show that North Korea is feeling the pinch, even in such a traditional ally as Cambodia."

The Cambodian government expressed concern about the North's nuclear and missile tests and urged the North to stop raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula twice last year.

Cambodia is seen as keeping its distance from the North. It rejected the North's invitation to Prime Minister Hun Sena to visit Pyongyang and a visit to the Southeast Asian nation by North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Su-yong and North Korean ceremonial head of state Kim Yong-nam in the first half of last year. (Yonhap)