North Korean presidential trains
- North Korean presidential trains
-
North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is known to use his high-security private trains as his preferred method of domestic and international travel, as was his father and predecessor Kim Il Sung.[1]
It has been reported that Kim Jong Il's preference for the railroad transport is due to his fear of flying.[2][3] Little is known about the train other than that it is heavily armored and is usually pulled by two power units.[citation needed] On his visit to Russia in 2002 the train was reported to have had 22 carriages.[2] Life on board is reported to be luxurious.[4]
It was reported in 2009 that Kim Jong Il makes use of a fleet of six presidential trains, which are made up of 90 armored luxury railcars. The presidential trains are said to serve a network of 19 stations across North Korea (including some underground palaces only accessible by rail). They also have been used for Kim's travel abroad.[5]
In April 2010, North Korea watchers were inferring Kim's unannounced visit to China based on the supposed sighting of his train in the Chinese border city of Dandong;[6] soon, however, it was learned that the train in question was just a regular cargo train, and Kim remained in North Korea.[7]
See also
Reference
- ^ "Profile: Kim Jong-il", BBC News, 31 July 2003.
- ^ a b Kim Jong-il rolls into Russia, BBC News website, 20 August 2002.
- ^ N.Korea leader makes surprise China visit, By Jeremy Laurence and Brett Cole, Reuters August 26, 2010
- ^ James Brooke ‘A telling North Korean Journey’, The New York Times, 3 December 2002: a review of an account of a month-long journey on the North Korean presidential train.
- ^ Fear of flying forces Kim Jong Il to use fleet of private trains Times Online, November 10, 2009.
- ^ Special N.Korean train arrives in China, AFP, 2010-04-03
- ^ North Korean cargo train sparks Kim trip speculation By K.J. Kwon, Reuters. April 3, 2010
Categories:
- Rail transport in North Korea
- Korea–Soviet Union relations
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