U.S. against Google exec’s planned visit to North Korea
Country aims to develop computer technology
SEOUL • The U.S. government is voicing opposition to a planned North Korea visit by Google’s executive chairman.
State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Thursday the timing of the visit by Eric Schmidt and former New Mexico governor Bill Richardson is “unhelpful.”
People familiar with the plans tell The Associated Press the trip will happen this month.
Nuland said Schmidt and Richardson were “well aware” of the U.S. government’s views. She said they would be travelling as private citizens and carrying no messages from Washington.
And when he lands in North Korea, Schmidt will likely have to relinquish his smartphone, leaving him disconnected from the global information network he helped build.
North Korea has the world’s most restrictive Internet policies, where locals need government permission to interact with foreigners — in person, by phone or by email — and only a tiny portion of the elite class is connected to the Internet.
But this visit may be a sign of Pyongyang’s growing desire to engage with the outside world. North Korea’s young leader, Kim Jong Un, talks about using science and technology to jump-start the country’s moribund economy, even if it means turning to experts from enemy nations for help.
Google’s intentions in North Korea are not clear. Two people familiar with the plans told The Associated Press that the trip was a “private, humanitarian mission.”
One expert says North Korea may be more interested in Google services such as email and mapping, as well as software development, than in giving its people Internet access.