The Sad Saga of North Korea's Airport ATMs

April 24, 2017

PYONGYANG, North Korea — No modern airport terminal is complete without an ATM, and Pyongyang's now has two. But they don't work — because of new Chinese sanctions, according to bank employees — and it's not clear when they will.

ATMs are an alien enough concept in North Korea that those in the capital's shiny new Sunan International Airport have a video screen near the top showing how they work and how to set up an account to use them. The explanatory video is in Korean, but the machines, which are meant primarily for Chinese businesspeople and tourists, don't give out cash in the North Korean currency.

ATMs are not entirely new to the North.

Read more: http://www.startribune.com/ap-exclusive-the-sad-saga-of-north-korea-s-atms/420197183