North Korea significantly reduced trade with China to prevent COVID-19: Report

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appears to have initiated COVID-19 pandemic prevention plan by restricting borders as the nation has scaled back trade with its largest trading partner, China. North Korea appears to make more stringent rules to prevent a pandemic and has nearly suspended all trade with China along with allegedly executing the officials for not being able to handle the imported goods appropriately. 

According to the data published by China’s customs administration, Beijing only exported $253,000 worth of goods to Pyongyang in October which is a significant drop of 99 per cent from September to last month. As per CNN report, China’s imports in North Korea in the month of October is less in terms of dollar value than what China exported to Liechtenstein and Monaco during the same month.

China is North Korea’s biggest trading partner and thus contributes positively to the latter’s economy as Pyongyang does not receive significant imports from any other nation. Moreover, Beijing accounted for over 90 per cent of entire foreign trade by Pyongyang before the United Nations (UN) slapped major sanctions on North Korea as punishment for its nuclear program in 2016 and 2017. 

But if the figures shared by China’s customs administration are accurate, it reflects Kim’s willingness to not just reduce but entirely scrap trade with China to prevent the novel coronavirus from entering the nation, that causes COVID-19. However, restricting trade with China is an even more stringent measure for pandemic prevention as it has been reporting very few cases eaches day. 

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North Korea has not acknowledged drop in trade

As per the report, North Korea has not yet publicly acknowledged the drop in a trade or even the reason behind it but the most probable explanation is the pandemic. During the months that world was rocked due to the global health crisis, the North Korean leader reportedly had ordered two executions related to crimes surrounding the highly-infectious disease. As per reports, South Korean lawmaker said after a briefing by country’s spy that it also included customs official who did not follow the COVID-19 prevention rules while importing goods from China.

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