North Korea expressed interest in Russian experience in protecting the Far Eastern leopard and tiger

Experts from the DPRK expressed interest in the Russian experience in studying and protecting the Far Eastern leopard and Amur tiger.

A delegation of environmental specialists from the DPRK visited the “Land of the Leopard” and discussed the possibilities of joint study and conservation of rare animals.

The visit of the DPRK delegation took place under the auspices of the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources in preparation for the second meeting of the subcommittee on environmental protection.

VLADIVOSTOK, October 6 – RIA Novosti. Environmental experts from the DPRK expressed interest in the Russian experience in studying and protecting the Far Eastern leopard and Amur tiger and stated that they intend to develop cooperation with colleagues from the Russian Federation in this direction, reports the directorate of the Land of the Leopard nature reserves.

A delegation of North Korean conservation specialists visited the “Land of the Leopard” for the first time in the 14 years of the national park’s existence. Experts also discussed the possibilities of joint study and conservation of the Far Eastern leopard and Amur tiger.

“We have already noted traces of the presence of big cats in the DPRK. We are interested in the Russian experience in studying and protecting the Far Eastern leopard and the Amur tiger and intend to develop cooperation with Russian colleagues in this direction,” said Kim Gwan Ho, head of the Department of Environmental Protection of the Ministry of State Territory and Environment Protection of the DPRK.

As the directorate noted, Korean specialists showed interest in the Russian experience in using camera traps and individual identification of animals. Representatives of the delegation previously expressed interest in conducting research on the territory of the DPRK and outlined the possibility of discussing joint research programs.

“An important stage in the development of dialogue with the DPRK is coming, because wild animals do not know state borders, and we need to understand together how many leopards and tigers there are in the border Korean forests,” Viktor Bardyuk, director of the Land of the Leopard Federal State Budgetary Institution, is quoted as saying.

During the three-day visit, foreign experts visited key places of protected areas in the leopard's range, including the oldest nature reserve in the Far East, Kedrovaya Pad.

The visit of the delegation of the Ministry of State Territory Protection and Environment of the DPRK took place under the auspices of the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources in preparation for the second meeting of the subcommittee on environmental protection of the intergovernmental commission on trade, economic, scientific and technical cooperation between the Russian Federation and the DPRK.