Irkutsk is preparing to open additional flights to Beijing, Seoul and Tokyo, Governor Sergei Eroshchenko said at a meeting with the DPRK consul general in Nakhodka. They also discussed tourism, trade and economic cooperation, and new opportunities in energy, oil and gas, and rail links.

Additional air service with Beijing, Seoul, and Tokyo will be opened in Irkutsk. This was announced today by the Governor of the Irkutsk Region, Sergey Eroshchenko, at a meeting with the Consul General of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in Nakhodka, Mr. Sim Guk Ren. The meeting was attended by the Deputy Governor of the Irkutsk Region – Chief of Staff of the Governor and Government of the Irkutsk Region Vladimir Dorofeev, and Minister of Economic Development and Industry Ruslan Kim.
As the head of the region noted, the acquisition of new aircraft and the modernization of the airport system contribute to the opening of new routes in the eastern direction. The Governor also emphasized that the Angara Region is interested in joint projects with the DPRK in the field of tourism (the participation of the Korean side in the implementation of the special economic zone project of a tourist and recreational type), in strengthening trade and economic relations, and in expanding contacts in the fields of electric power and the oil and gas industry.
Sergey Eroshchenko and Mr. Sim Guk Ren discussed the development of rail service in connection with the opening of the project to connect the Trans-Korean Railway with the Trans-Siberian Railway and the prospects for increasing trade turnover between the region and the DPRK.
As Mr. Sim Guk Ren reported, the DPRK intends to offer the Irkutsk Region its own developments in such fields as mechanical engineering, metallurgy, construction, light industry, science, and healthcare. The Consul also noted that the General Consulate of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in Nakhodka is interested in cooperating on the bilateral exchange of specialists in these areas.
Based on materials from the press service of the Governor of the Irkutsk Region and the Government of the Irkutsk Region