North Korea has vehemently denounced the British government’s recent decision to include the Songdowon International Children’s Camp, located in Wonsan, Gangwon Province, on its sanctions list against Russia, labeling it a political provocation.
On May 15, a spokesperson for North Korea’s Foreign Ministry, in a Q&A session with a Korean Central News Agency reporter, declared that the UK’s reckless action is a despicable political provocation. They argued that it unjustly links their children’s camping facility to the baseless issue of “forced relocation” of Ukrainian children, aiming to tarnish North Korea’s international image and undermine the friendly cooperation between North Korea and Russia.
Previously, on May 11, the UK Foreign Office announced additional sanctions against Russia related to the transportation and militarization of Ukrainian children. The Songdowon International Children’s Camp was included in this sanctions list. Reports suggest that the UK believes this camp is connected to a Russian program that indoctrinates forcibly relocated Ukrainian children.
During a U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee hearing last December, allegations surfaced that Ukrainian children abducted by Russian forces from occupied territories were forcibly transferred to the Songdowon Camp. This facility, which opened in 1960, has been providing educational programs to youth from pro-North Korean countries, serving as a propaganda tool for the North Korean regime.
In response, North Korea stated that they have targeted our camp, a sacred place for children’s education and growth, for their political agenda, strongly condemning the UK’s malicious behavior.
Furthermore, they accused the UK of aligning with the U.S. hostile policy toward North Korea, describing it as an intolerable insult to their dignified nation.
North Korea specifically warned that since they have dared to infringe upon the rights and interests of our most cherished children, it has every right to respond to London’s malicious actions, suggesting the possibility of retaliation.