New Starbucks at South Korea's border offers view of North Korean village

Tensions between North and South Korea continue to escalate, as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un intensifies his threats, including the possibility of nuclear attacks if provoked. 

Coffee lovers can enjoy their drinks while gazing at a peaceful North Korean mountain village from a newly opened Starbucks at a South Korean border observatory, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

To enter the observatory at Aegibong Peace Ecopark, visitors must pass through a military checkpoint. The location, less than a mile from North Korea, offers views of Songaksan Mountain and a nearby village in Kaephung county.

At the Starbucks, the tables and windows are oriented toward North Korea, and approximately 40 people, including a few foreigners, attended the opening event.

The South Korean city of Gimpo stated that the addition of Starbucks is part of a broader effort to develop its border facilities as a tourist attraction. The city also highlighted that the presence of the well-known capitalist brand is a symbol of “robust security on the Korean Peninsula.”

The observatory serves as the central feature of Aegibong Park, which was constructed on a hill that witnessed intense battles during the 1950-53 Korean War. The park also includes gardens, exhibition and conference halls, as well as a war memorial honoring fallen marines.

Gimpo, along with other South Korean border cities such as Paju, has been working to turn their border sites into tourist attractions, despite the rising tensions between the war-divided Koreas.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been intensifying pressure on South Korea, threatening to use nuclear weapons if provoked. Additionally, North Korea has carried out psychological and electronic warfare tactics, such as sending balloons filled with trash into South Korea and disrupting GPS signals around the country’s largest airport.

Kaephung county is thought to be one of the main locations from which North Korea has launched thousands of balloons over the past several months.

On Friday, South Korea’s military reported that North Korea launched dozens more balloons overnight, with some trash and leaflets landing near the capital Seoul and in the surrounding Gyeonggi province.

By Naila Huseynova