BEIJING — State-owned airline Air China suspended flights Tuesday between Beijing and North Korea due to a lack of demand, deepening the North’s…
BEIJING — State-owned airline Air China suspended flights Tuesday between Beijing and North Korea due to a lack of demand, deepening the North’s isolation amid mounting U. N. sanctions over its nuclear and missile programs.
The move followed U. S. President Donald Trump’s decision to add Pyongyang to a list of governments that support terrorism but there was no indication that prompted Air China’s decision. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said he had no information.
The suspension left North Korea’s Air Koryo as the only airline with regularly scheduled service to the North. Its website lists flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Shenyang and Dandong in China and Vladivostok in Russia.
Beijing has supported U. N. curbs on North Korean exports meant to pressure the government of leader Kim Jong Un to drop its pursuit of nuclear and missile technology but has argued against measures that might harm the country’s public.
Flights were “temporarily suspended due to unsatisfactory business operations,” said an employee of Air China’s press office who would give only his surname, Zhang.
