Moscow, July 10 (V7N) – Direct flights between Moscow and the North Korean capital Pyongyang will begin later this month, according to an announcement from the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) on Wednesday (July 9).

ATOR said that Russia’s civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsia, has granted charter airline Nordwind permission to operate twice-weekly flights on the Moscow–Pyongyang route. Nordwind had submitted its application for the route in June.

Currently, North Korea’s national carrier Air Koryo operates the only direct flights between the two countries, servicing the Pyongyang–Vladivostok route twice a week. That service resumed in August 2023, following a three-year suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The introduction of the new Moscow–Pyongyang route follows renewed aviation cooperation talks between Rosaviatsia and North Korean authorities, with the Russian side reportedly encouraging the expansion of flight links after the reopening of the Vladivostok route.

According to ATOR, Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport has included Pyongyang in its official flight schedule, with operations expected to begin from July 27.

The growing air connectivity comes amid deepening ties between Russia and North Korea, particularly since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Western nations, including the United States, have accused Pyongyang of supplying artillery shells and ballistic missiles to Russia for use in the war.

In recent months, both countries have exchanged high-level delegations and signed a mutual defense treaty during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s state visit to Pyongyang in 2024 — further signaling a strategic alliance between the two isolated nations.

Source: Moscow Times

END/RH/AJ