Kangdong Residence[1] is the summer retreat and second major residence of the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un besides Ryongsong Residence.[2]
Kangdong Residence | |
Chosŏn'gŭl | 강동 관저 |
---|---|
Hancha | 江東官邸 |
Revised Romanization | Gangdong Gwanjeo |
McCune–Reischauer | Kangdong Kwanjŏ |
The residence is located in Kangdong-gun, a suburban county of Pyongyang, around 30 km (19 mi) northeast of Kim Il-sung Square.[3] Taedong River is just 1 km (0.62 mi) to the north.[4] The size of the whole leadership complex is around 4 km2 (1.5 sq mi). According to Kim Jong Il’s former bodyguard Lee Young-kuk there are at least eight North Korean leader’s residences outside Pyongyang.[5]
The compound was constructed in the 1980s and expanded in the 1990s under the order of Kim Jong Il.[6] It contains buildings for Kim Jong Il, his late wife Ko Yong-hui, his sister Kim Kyong-hui and his brother-in-law Jang Sung-taek.[7] The area is mostly used as a summer residence, to spend holidays[8] or for parties with close officials.[6] The estate has an elaborate garden, set around many lakes. There are numerous guest houses, and a banqueting hall.[9] The whole compound is a maximum security area, surrounded by two armored fence lines[10] with guards huts and checkpoints, clearly visible on satellite pictures.[citation needed] Kim Jong Il’s former cook Kenji Fujimoto worked and lived in a guest house within the compound and provided some photographs dated 1989.[7] Analysis of satellite pictures showed that the area changed significantly since then and even after 2006 new buildings and a new railway station were established.[11] Defectors reported that in Hyangmok-ri, not far from the residence and from the Mausoleum of Tangun, Kim Jong Un’s birthplace is being built,[12] though he was actually born in Changsong, North Pyongan Province.[13]
39°12′05″N 126°01′14″E / 39.201381°N 126.020683°E