To fight Covid-19, North Korea has a special flight to bring foreign diplomats to the Russian Far East

A passenger wearing a Covid-19 protective mask has his temperature checked before boarding a plane to Vladivostok, Russia, at Pyongyang International Airport on March 9. Photo: AP

North Korea has not publicly confirmed any cases of Covid-19, but its state media reported that thousands of people have been quarantined under strict precautions.

Dozens of passengers, most of them wearing masks and some with children, appeared to line up at Pyongyang International Airport. North Korean medical staff in white protective suits checked their temperatures.

It is not yet clear how many people were brought to Vladivostok. North Korea lifted a one-month quarantine on foreign diplomats in Pyongyang on March 2, allowing them to leave the country if necessary.

The Vladivostok International Airport website shows Air Koyro Flight 271 landed at 10:49 a.m. local time.

Colin Crooks, the British ambassador to Pyongyang, tweeted: “Sad to say goodbye this morning to colleagues from the German Embassy and the French Office in the DPRK, which are now temporarily closed.” He said the British Embassy would remain open.

The French Foreign Ministry confirmed last week that it planned to temporarily close its cooperation office in Pyongyang. “The DPRK has taken drastic measures of restraint since the end of January, causing significant concern for foreign missions and seriously hampering the activities of the French Cooperation Office in Pyongyang,” the ministry said in a statement.

North Korea has called its anti-virus campaign a matter of “national survival,” while banning foreign tourists, shutting down nearly all cross-border traffic with China, stepping up checks at border crossings and mobilizing medical staff to monitor residents and quarantine those showing symptoms.

Many experts say North Korea is vulnerable to infectious diseases due to chronic medical supply shortages and outdated health care facilities.

North Korea's state radio said on March 8 that authorities last week allowed the end of quarantine for 1,020 people in Kangwon Province and another 2,630 in Jagang Province.

Earlier media reports said at least 7,000 North Koreans had been quarantined, including 3,000 in North Phyongan Province, 2,420 in South Phyongan Province and 1,500 in Kangwon Province.

North Korea said on March 6 that it had allowed 221 foreign nationals to end their month-long quarantine. At least 160 others are believed to still be in quarantine, as Pyongyang initially said it had placed more than 380 foreign nationals under “strictly restricted medical supervision.”

Yoh Sang-key, spokesman for the South Korean Unification Ministry, said on March 9 that North Korea has not responded to South Korea's proposals for joint quarantine efforts.