North Korea appears to have begun dismantling a floating hotel owned by South Korea’s Hyundai Asan company, NK News analysis of satellite imagery shows, fulfilling a promise made by Kim Jong Un in 2019 to remove ROK assets from the Mount Kumgang resort.

The disassembly appeared to begin around March 6, three days before South Koreans went to the polls to elect a new president — indicating Pyongyang intended to send a message to the South regardless of whether the liberal or conservative candidate won. 

It also comes as North Korea has announced a major expansion of its main satellite launching station and as reports have emerged that Pyongyang has restarted intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launches and begun to revive its underground nuclear test site.

According to Planet Labs imagery, workers appeared to be removing the roof of the Haegumgang Hotel and gathering materials on the adjacent docks at Kosong Port between March 7 and 9. 

The above comparison shows what appears to be the beginning of efforts to dismantle the Haegumgang floating hotel prior to the South Korean presidential election | Images: Planet Labs PBH, edited by NK News

There did not appear to be any signs of similar activity at Hyundai Asan’s Ananti Golf Resort or other facilities in the Mount Kumgang tourist area.

Hyundai Asan purchased the Haegumgang Hotel — formerly a luxurious hotspot in Vietnam called the Saigon Hotel — in 1998 for 12.7 billion KRW, or more than $18 million USD, and had it repaired in Singapore before towing it to North Korea. 

• READ MORE: How Saigon’s premier night spot ended up in North Korea

DPRK leader Kim Jong Un said in Oct. 2019 that the South Korean assets in the area, including the floating hotel, were “shabby” and lacked “national character,” and that North Korea would “remove all the unpleasant-looking facilities of the south [Korean] side” upon reaching an agreement with relevant ROK parties.

South Korea’s Ministry of Unification, Hyundai Asan and other parties attempted to negotiate with North Korea following Kim’s announcement, but Pyongyang initially refused to meet.  

Top DPRK official Kim Tok Hun later visited the Mount Kumgang area in Dec. 2020 to reiterate Kim Jong Un’s plans to build “a world-class hotel, golf course, skiing ground, etc.” in place of destroyed South Korean facilities.

As of imagery dated March 9, there were no signs of construction crews amassing on site to carry out these ambitious plans, some of which would see a new beach resort built just 3 miles (5 kilometers) up the coast from the South Korean border.

Meanwhile, North Korea still has not opened or shown signs of efforts to push construction forward on its largest-ever beach resort project located just north of Kumgang in Wonsan, which has appeared stalled since 2019. 

Edited by Bryan Betts