Russians enter North Korea in first foreign tour group since COVID-19 pandemic

FILE PHOTO: Russian and North Korean flags fly at the Vostochny Сosmodrome, the venue of the meeting between Russia's President Vladimir Putin and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, in the far eastern Amur region, Russia, September 13, 2023. Sputnik/Artem Geodakyan/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

SEOUL (Reuters) - About 100 Russians flew to North Korea on Friday for a private tour, becoming the first foreign group to visit the reclusive state following the COVID-19 pandemic in a landmark trip summed up by the Russian embassy as "Pyongyang opens its door."

North Korea shuttered its borders with some of the tightest restrictions during the pandemic, in one incident shooting dead a South Korean who floated unauthorized into its waters.