By Tomoyuki Tachikawa, KYODO NEWS - Apr 18, 2018 - 10:20 | World, Lifestyle, All

Ahead of its historic summits with South Korea and the United States, North Korea's capital is in a state of calmness and stability, with light pink apricot blossoms blooming.

The atmosphere in Pyongyang signals that North Korea, which has pursued ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons for more than a decade, is now seriously engaged in diplomacy instead of provocations.

International economic sanctions against North Korea seem to be having little impact on the lives of everyday people in Pyongyang, given that there are yet no noticeable changes in currency exchange rates and food, commodity and gasoline prices.

Some countries -- in particular the United States and Japan -- have argued that North Korea was compelled to shift toward diplomacy against the backdrop of economic sanctions, but that notion appears to be false, at least seen from Pyongyang.



(A man cycles past a monument in Pyongyang)

A group of Kyodo News journalists visited Pyongyang in the run-up to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's planned summits with South Korean President Moon Jae In on April 27 and U.S. President Donald Trump possibly by the end of May or in early June.

At Pyongyang International Airport, whose new international terminal was opened three years ago, airport staff greeted foreign visitors with smiles, excluding when they strictly carried out security checking.

Once the car left the airport for the center of Pyongyang, avenues were filled with thousands of pink apricot blossoms, like Japanese cherry blossoms.

Under a canopy of the trees, male students in school uniforms were riding two-up on bicycles, female junior high school students were walking hand in hand, and classic Mercedes-Benz cars were running on the road.

The 300-meter-tall, 105-story, long-dormant hotel building that dominates Pyongyang's skyline has been lit up since early April, setting off expectations that it might finally open in the not-so-distant future.



(Ryugyong Hotel, an unfinished pyramid-shaped skyscraper, lit up in Pyongyang)

Many people are walking with smiles on the streets in Pyongyang, with some children playing a game on a smartphone.

Since late last year, China, North Korea's main economic lifeline, has bolstered economic sanctions against the neighboring country, dealing a severe blow to its broad economy, foreign affairs experts said.

China used to account for about 90 percent of North Korea's external trade. In February, China's imports from North Korea plunged nearly 95 percent from a year earlier, official trade data showed in late March.

But traffic flow is as usual, causing congestion during rush hours in some central areas in Pyongyang. There have been no obvious differences in the amount of items sold at shops. Gasoline prices have been stable after they shot up last year, according to a local.

North Korea has recently produced 70 to 80 percent of foods, cosmetic products, beverages, and other goods at home, the local said, adding a lot of factories have been built across the nation over the past five years or so.

In addition, many foreigners visited Pyongyang to celebrate the 106th anniversary of the birth of North Korea's late founder Kim Il Sung on Sunday, known in the country as the "Day of the Sun."



(People dance in Pyongyang during Day of the Sun celebrations)

Most hotels in the city were fully booked, another local said, suggesting that North Korea still has ways to acquire foreign currency despite international sanctions.

"Because we live on our own, international sanctions do not mean anything to us. We have enough to live on," Yang Yong Ae, a 50-year-old employee of the sports ministry, told Kyodo News.

During the celebrations of the Day of Sun, political slogans in public spaces in Pyongyang made no mention of the nation's ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programs, as Kim Jong Un has reportedly expressed readiness to discuss denuclearization.

At an annual exhibition featuring about 24,000 roots of "Kimilsungia," a purple flower of the orchid family named after Kim Il Sung, there were no replicas of satellite-carrying rockets or missiles, unlike on previous anniversaries.

Since late November, Pyongyang has conducted no nuclear or ballistic missile tests.



(North Koreans watch fireworks during Day of the Sun celebrations)

In his New Year's address on Jan. 1, Kim Jong Un extended an olive branch, saying he would prepare for his country's participation in the Feb. 9-25 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics hosted by South Korea.

After meeting with Moon's special envoys in Pyongyang in early March, Kim held a surprise summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing during his first foreign trip since becoming North Korea's leader following the death of his father Kim Jong Il in 2011.

Speculation has also been growing that the North Korean supreme leader will visit Russia to talk with President Vladimir Putin as early as in May before meeting with Trump.

Last month, Trump told reporters at the White House that international sanctions, especially "the great help" from China, appear to have propelled Kim to seek dialogue with the United States.

Indeed, the U.N. World Food Program said on its website that about 70 percent of North Korea's 25.1 million population is "food insecure," adding, "Many people suffer from chronic malnutrition due to lack of essential proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals."

Although rural areas in North Korea may be facing food shortages, people in Pyongyang, who love singing and dancing, everyday enjoy meals, listening to a band playing.

It is difficult to determine at this juncture whether international sanctions alone prompted the country's leadership to promote diplomacy since the beginning of this year. Now, the fact is that people in Pyongyang are having their usual life, exactly the same as those in other countries.