Smile and don’t look scared: North Koreans get coached on meeting foreigners
In this file photo from 2018, foreign tourists ride the Pyongyang Metro. Photo: iStock/redonion1515
North Korean authorities are reportedly holding training sessions to teach residents how to behave when encountering foreigners, urging them not to avoid visitors or appear hesitant but instead to greet them with a smile and confidence. The sessions even provide suggested responses to questions foreigners might ask when striking up a conversation.
According to a source in North Hamgyong Province who spoke with this reporter last month, authorities have recently been conducting such sessions for residents, workers and students in the cities of Hoeryong and Chongjin.
The training is not new to the two cities. Since 2022, similar sessions have reportedly been held approximately once every two months for people living in areas where encounters with foreigners are more likely, including Pyongyang, Wonsan, Rason and border regions.
The initiative reportedly stems from authorities’ dissatisfaction with residents’ previously passive attitudes toward foreigners. In the past, many people would leave an area or otherwise try to avoid contact whenever they encountered foreigners on the street or in public places.
Officials are particularly concerned that residents who appear hesitant, unsure how to behave or overly conscious of those around them when encountering foreigners could leave visitors with a negative impression of North Korean society. They have therefore been providing detailed instructions on how to respond in different situations.
Residents are being taught not to appear flustered or frightened when they encounter foreigners, regardless of the circumstances. Instead, they are instructed to smile brightly and behave naturally and confidently.
When encountering foreigners on the street or in public places, residents are told not to turn away or avoid them, but to offer a friendly smile, a small wave and a greeting, the source said.
The initiative appears to go beyond basic etiquette training and form part of a broader effort to manage North Korea’s image by presenting foreign visitors with a more welcoming and seemingly natural social environment. The fact that the sessions are held repeatedly, particularly in areas likely to receive foreign tourists, suggests that authorities are seeking to regulate even the behavior of ordinary residents as they prepare to expand international tourism.
The instructions become more specific when a foreigner initiates a conversation. Residents are told not to avoid the interaction but to listen carefully, understand the question and respond appropriately.
If asked about their living conditions or North Korean society, residents are instructed to say something along the lines of: “We always live happily thanks to the love and care of our respected Marshal,” the source said.
Students receive similar guidance. If foreigners ask about school life or education, they are taught to respond with statements such as: “Thanks to the love and care of our respected Marshal, we receive free education and are able to study and live without envying anyone in the world.”
“During the lectures, they tell us not to stand there like fools, hesitating or looking frightened when we see foreigners,” the source said. “They teach us that looking foreigners confidently in the eye and giving them a bright smile is itself a way of showing them what our socialist homeland is like.”
“This training goes beyond simply teaching people to be friendly. Its purpose is to leave foreigners with a favorable impression of North Korea and demonstrate that residents enjoy their way of life thanks to the love and care of the Marshal,” the source added.
“As a result, residents and students are expected to behave and speak according to what they have been taught, regardless of their actual circumstances,” the source said.
Since Kim Jong-un came to power, North Korea has consistently emphasized the importance of developing its tourism industry. Even after keeping its borders closed for an extended period during the COVID-19 pandemic, the country continued to pursue institutional reforms and expand tourism-related facilities in an effort to revive the sector.
What is particularly noteworthy is that preparations for welcoming tourists are no longer limited to improving infrastructure such as hotels and transportation. They now extend to regulating the behavior of ordinary residents who may come into direct contact with foreign visitors.
The repeated training sessions in Pyongyang, major tourist destinations and border regions appear to be part of this broader effort.
“In the past, many residents thought it was simply easier to keep their distance whenever they saw a foreigner,” the source said. “But perhaps because of the training they have received over the past few years, we are now seeing a noticeable increase in people who greet foreigners first or interact with them naturally, rather than avoiding them or appearing frightened.”
The source added that residents in border areas and places such as Rason and Wonsan have relatively more opportunities to encounter foreigners, making continued training particularly important.
“That is why the authorities continue to provide training in these areas on how to interact with them,” he said.
Sewon is the North Korean-born founder and CEO of NK Times, a Seoul-based Korean-language online news outlet focused on North Korean affairs. Drawing on his personal experience living in the country, he strives for transparency and accuracy in reporting, working to inform the public about the realities of North Korea.
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