North Korean restaurants reopen in China

SEOUL, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- North Korean restaurants, closed for months under sanctions, are reopening in China, South Korean media reported.

A North Korean restaurant reopened in the Chinese city of Shenyang, Liaoning Province, an hour by train from the North Korean border, according to Yonhap.

The Moran Restaurant reopened eight months after it closed in January when the Chinese government ordered North Korean-run businesses in China to shut down under the United Nations sanctions.

The U.N. Security Council Resolution 2375 restricts any overseas activity by North Korea to block a cash flow to the regime.

"Since China has participated in the U.N. sanctions on North Korea, a slew North Korean restaurants closed. But as the China and North Korea relations improved as their leaders met for summits three times in the first half of this year, it has led to reopening of North Korean businesses in China," an unnamed source was quoted as saying in the report.

Another restaurant in the Xita District, known as the Korea Town" in Shenyang, was seen with workers moving kitchen supplies and construction materials for a makeover, according to the report.

Ryugyong Restaurant, one of the biggest North Korean restaurants in the Chinese border city of Dandong, also reopened in April, a month after the first summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in March.