North Korea Casino Goals Tumble

So, apparently North Korea wants to grow it's tourist industry. Now there's an oxymoron! The Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un is desperate for foreign cash. To that end he is determined to push forwards the development of integrated resorts. But reasons beyond even his control have seen North Korea casino goals tumble.

Introduction: North Korea Casino Goals Tumble

Our dear leader Kim has set his sights on the port city of Wonsan, in the countries eastern coastal region of Kangwon province. Always in need of funds, in 2018, he tried to woe President Trump to invest in the casino resort. Construction had already begun in 2011 and just two years later, the Masikryong Ski Resort in Wonsan opened. This was two years after Kim came to power. His vision to expand the resort into a global tourist and gambling hub, with many more casinos and resorts, appears to have stalled.

Kim Wants One Million Tourists

In the capital city, Pyongyang, there is one foreign owed casino, at the Yanggakdo International Hotel. This space is operated by SJM Holdings, one of six major casino operators from Macau in China. After the death of his father, Kim set a goal of generating one million tourists visiting North Korea on an annual basis. Having been fascinated by casinos and table games himself, it's really no surprise that he set his sights on building a skiing and gambling mecca in Wonsan. Of course, with heavy limitations on internet access for the countries citizens, don't be surprised that there's no online gambling going on. For that take a look at these online casinos in South Korea.

Global Warming Stalls Project

But something is rotten in the state of Denmark (OK North Korea). This week, Bloomberg news reported that Kim's Winter wonderland is beginning to slip from his grasp. And the reason; Global warming! The slopes of Masikryong are just 1.363 meters high. So, though the mountains share the same latitude as, say Colorado, North Korea's mountains lack the height. just like Kim himself! Colorado's peaks, for example in Aspen, are at least 8,000 meters in elevation. As in the West, skiing just ain't what it used to be. Thanks to global warming, South Korea's weather office points out that temperatures are to rise by over 15% in the next twenty years. This, of course, will lead to a shorter skiing season. And so it's no surprise that work on the Winter resort is slowing down.

Lack of Funds

But the onset of global warming is just one of a couple of problems besetting the project. The other is simply lack of funds. Korea has one of the poorest economies of any country in the world. So it's no surprise that finding the funds for what is essentially a huge vanity project, are proving difficult. According to online casino news in South Korea, in an attempt to seek investment, Kim sent an envoy, Kim Yong Chol, to the White House a couple of years ago. He wanted to tie investment funding to, among other things, the prospect to denuclearize North Korea's missile stocks. In 2018, Kim met with Trump in Singapore and took a tour of the casino resort Marina Bay Sands. It must of been such an eye opener for Kim.

Kim Needs Trump

This week, the National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien, stated that Trump is open to a meeting with Kim. “President Trump has made it very clear that if he can get a great deal for the American people, he’ll go to a summit,” O’Brien said. However, as one witty website, PredictIt put it, the odds of a meeting for the forth time by the end of 2020; “Yes” shares of Trump and Kim shaking hands again are at 29 cents."

Coronavirus Could Devastate North Korea

To add more problems into the mix, the coronavirus is reaping havoc next door in China. Though North Korea claims they have no confirmed cases, experts are certain that the virus must of invaded the country by now. There is presently a travel ban on anyone who wishes to enter the Republic. Some health officials believe that the coronavirus is already rampant throughout North Korea. With extreme rates of poverty and a total lack of medical infrastructure, it wouldn't take long for a few cases to balloon to a full blown epidemic. As Harry Kazianis, director of Korean Studies at the Center for National Interest says, “Considering how there are many porous sections of the North Korea-China border, and how the Kim regime depends on illegal trade to survive, it is clear the virus has come to North Korea.” Now go an cheer yourself up in the knowledge that you live in a democracy by having a punt at King Billy Casino.

North Korean Hacker Army

Though it might be impossible for North Korean citizens to gamble online, the chief of South Korea's Defense Security Command claimed that the country's neighbor to the north was running a huge online gambling network. Apparently this is targeting Western players and planting spyware on their computers. He also claimed that this illegal business brings in around $866 million per year. Compared with the countries GDP of $40 billion, this is quite a chunk of change. We suggest that you stick with a tried and trusted site to gamble at, like King Billy Casino.