Where is North Korea?
North Korea is located on the Northern half of the Korean peninsula in North-eastern Asia. The border between the two Koreas was originally drawn along the 38 th parallel however it does not follow this in a straight line.
North Korea shares a land border with South Korea to the south, China to the North and a small part with Russia in the Northeast. North Korea is
The majority of the country is mountainous with the highest mountain of the country, Mount Paektu, split between China and North Korea. The most populated part of the country runs along the western side of the country, which is where Pyongyang as well as the main agricultural centres are located.
Until very recently North Korean saw the peninsular as a whole country with the end goal of reunification. After an announcement in January of 2023, this has now changed and the North has now deemed the South as an enemy state and has now ended the goal of reunification.
Regions of North Korea
North Korea is divided between nine administrative regions and three main economic cities. The three cities with separate administrative status are Nampo (on the west coast), Pyongyang (the capital) and Rason (a special economic zone in the Northeast along the border with Russia).
Pyongyang
The capital and beating heart of North Korea is Pyongyang. Pyongyang lies on the banks of the Taedong river and is one of the oldest cities on the Korean peninsular having previously been the capital of two ancient Korean kingdoms. It currently has an estimated population of around 3.8 million people and is the largest city in North Korea.
The name Pyongyang means ‘flat land’ and refers the geography of area surrounding the city which is low and flat.
The city was almost completely destroyed following the Korean war, however, was rebuilt with the assistance of the Soviet Union. The city’s streets are categorised for different purposes such as education, government and the arts. It is common to find streets with names like “future scientist street” which is said to house students and teachers from nearby education institutions in futuristic looking buildings.
Rason Special Economic zone
The Rason Special Economic Zone was set up in the 1990s to increase economic investment into the country. It is located on the western side of the Tumen river in the north-eastern most part of the country bordering both China and Russia. It has been set up in a similar style to the Special economic zones of China where they aim to pilot different market economics to the rest of the country. Rason also serves as a warm water port for both North Korea and Russia.
