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AFP to open first permanent office in Pyongyang

Xinhua, January 19, 2016 Adjust font size:

Paris-based international news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP) will open for the first time a permanent office in Pyongyang, capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), according to information published by AFP Tuesday.

The AFP and the official news agency Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) have signed Tuesday an agreement in Paris which permits AFP to have an office in Pyongyang that will produce texts, photos and videos, AFP said in a press release.

This is the first time that AFP opens an office in the DPRK, Philippe Massonnet, Asia-Pacific Regional Director of AFP confirmed to Xinhua in an interview by email.

AFP said the office would be operational in the first half of 2016 and would hire a photographer and a videographer from DPRK, adding other journalists from AFP network will have access and facilities for visa enter the DPRK as part of the agreement.

"Our customers are very demanding of images from this country (DPRK)", said the CEO of AFP Emmanuel Hoog.

The office will enrich the network of AFP which has already 200 offices in 150 countries. As one of the largest international news agencies, AFP has more than 2,300 employees from 80 different nationalities, report in six languages to the world everyday.

Before AFP, international media such as China's Xinhua News Agency, American news agency the Associated Press have already established permanent offices to report the Asian country with a population of less than 25 million. Enditem