North Korea is constructing high-voltage fences in sparsely inhabited regions along the municipal borders of Pyongyang, Daily NK has learned.
Speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, a source in Pyongyang told Daily NK on Tuesday that North Korea’s government issued an order on Feb. 11 instructing the Capital Defence Command, Ministry of State Security, and Ministry of Social Security to install high-voltage fences in certain areas along the municipal borders of Pyongyang.
Based on the source’s account, the order instructed the agencies to install 3,300 volt wires, transformers, thermal cameras and other equipment along sparsely inhabited stretches of Pyongyang’s city limits, which residents of other areas of the country have used as pathways to illegally enter the capital.
The order instructed the agencies not to install fences near flatlands and residential areas near Pyongyang, and urged the agencies involved to make all efforts to guard the city, including the reinforcement of guard posts.
The order explained that construction of the fences is aimed at ensuring “the safety of the revolutionary leadership,” and that the authorities must thoroughly establish a “new order” and “strict system” for controlling access to the capital. It is noteworthy that the North Korean authorities stated in the order that the measure is aimed at protecting the personal safety of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Construction on the fences began from mid-February, right after the order – signed by Kim himself – was handed down, and construction continues to this day.
North Korea has been erecting high-voltage wires and bulletproof walls along the China-North Korea border to stop smuggling and defections since 2021.
Daily NK’s source in Pyongyang said the authorities issued the February order because residents of other areas of the country continued to illegally enter Pyongyang in significant numbers despite intensified efforts to restrict access to the city during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.
People caught illegally entering Pyongyang without city residence cards or entry permit numbers told city authorities that they entered the capital through sparsely inhabited hillside areas. These testimonies led the authorities to see the need to construct high-voltage fences in those places, the source said.
Fence network set to be completed by 2025
The Capital Defense Command first drafted a plan for the project, which then led to Kim’s February order to have the Capital Defense Command, Ministry of State Security, and Ministry of Social Security begin construction on the fences.
Three engineering battalions of the Capital Defense Command and two brigades of the Seventh General Bureau are carrying out the construction project, which is divided into separate zones of responsibility.
The construction units are currently erecting concrete posts that will be used to connect the high-voltage wires. The posts, which were locally produced, are around six meters high, the source said.
North Korea plans to complete the high-voltage fencing project by 2025, which is when the nation’s five-year economic development plan comes to an end, he added.
An American satellite image analyst, Jacob Bogle, published an article on Friday saying that new areas of fencing have been appearing near Pyongyang.
Bogle unveiled an analysis of satellite photos on his website, AccessDPRK, saying that North Korean authorities have been building a new fence system around Pyongyang to bolster security, and that existing fences near factories and agricultural areas have been incorporated into the new system.
Translated by David Black. Edited by Robert Lauler.
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