JAPANESE - NORTH KOREA TRADE AND CONTACTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00457R004600240002-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: November 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 9, 2000
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: April 4, 1950
• Content Type: REPORT

CLASSIFICATION c?-:I17".T. 25X1A
Approved For Refugglonti5MR1AK82-oo45Prei046002
INFORMATION REPORT CD NO.
COUNTRY Jannn./Korea
CONFIDENTIAL
SUBJECT Jananese - North Korean Trade and Contacts
PLACE
ACQUIRED
DATE OF 25X1A
2gY9X
25X1A
thfSe"
to REPORT NO.
DATE DISTR. 4 ;
NO. OP PAGES 2
NO. OF ENCLS.
(LISTED BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
The Korean Commercial Company (Choson Sang Sa Hoe Sa.,)
?r.1 31 A ?*
financed by North Korean Labor Party capital at an estima ed tnme hundred
million won, has a monopoly over trade between North Korea and Japan and Ilan-
churir,.. Its Japanese trade, soon after the formation of thc: firm in 3.90,
waf4_ iniAated by a visit to Osaka of the first general xrana;;er. MION Tlae-hyong
) ,and five other members of the firm, including PrK Yong-ha (
Negotiations for exchange of commodities and discussion of political
problems continued for eight months. KWON 9** and PKSK then returned Ito North
Korea? :ving the other firm representatives in Osaka, and trade commer,sed,
Korean Corimercial Company personnel in Osaka have several functions in addi-
tion to their business duties,. One of these is to transmit orders from the
North Korean Labor Party to the Korean Resident& Association in Japan.? A
second is to monitor North Korean radio broadcasts daily and to distribute
illegally to the Japanese Communist Party the inforgiation thus obtained? It
is through this roans that much North Korean propaganda is brought to both
Japoneso and Koreans in Japan. Other contacts between the NKLP and the JCP
ai:ofoZlow this channel.
3. Trade 1),-Ncen the two countries ut,ili2es the water route between Wonsan
(127-26 and Tsurnga (136-04, "i5-37). The SS "Dalzai Maru" (;k)A ALI )
(Daose-1,;an in Korean), which js regirtered in Osaka, freounnts -r,ho 12T.c7,.;h
Korean corts-
4. The numerous Jananese tecnnicians wno were in mor.on Aorea tmrlag UAW Wash wt-J4r1
later partly disnersed to the USSR and fihnolraria as. Soviet nrisoners of war.
North Korean authorities, however, managed to retain some essential Janqnese
technicians, excenting administrative and military nersonnel, in the oil in-
dustry who were willing to stay in the country. At the insistence of the
South Hargyong Provincial Peonies Committee, some additional nersonnel were
also kept to work in the Hungnam (127-33. 39-52) factory. Jananese techni-
cians remaining in Korea were nermitted to organile a Jananese Residents' As-
sociation and were given favorable living conditions. Their nay is eight times
tir.t of a Korean worker.
Document No.
oci
?INF'DE !A,1 IN(1401 CD- alifeg In
s
STATE
NAVY
? ?.. .......
NSR13
DI r'181-11
--;''r ..6. i 'As.* '4
? ? ilk Vilikk
iisamitiah las
.1___
I -1----
ARMY
4
AIR
FBI
av
Approved For R
NI"
This document is hereby regraded to
CONFIDENTIAL in accordance with the
letter of 13 October 1978 from the
Director cf Central Intelligence to the
46t2b001643/111 .setPA-RDP8
Next Review Date: 2008
?
NET Ti RECORDS CENTER
tc
yzn
49 w.*/
-00457R0046
fte
GMT/7-T T
Approved For Release 2000/0 8 : CIA-RDP82-00457R004801240002-7
CEUTRAL /rTELLIGT7CE A.(17.7CT
"s CONFIDENTIAL
5, During 1949,, iJorth Korean authorities maLe special efforts to bring
Japanese technicians to Korea, laroly because industrial production had
shown a sharp decrease through incompetent technical handling. Special
offers were made to Japanese captured by the Chinese Communists. Pri-
mary attention, however, was concentrated on inducing technicians to came
in from Japan. Representatives of the Korean Commercial Company took
Japanese technicians from Korea to Osaka to recruit new personnel illegal-
ly without the knowledge of 3CLP headquarters.
6. At the beginning of August 1949,, seventy Japanese were taken to Wonsan on
the "Daizai Nam" as guests of the Earth Korean government. After receivine
sole indoctrination courses at Pyongyang, forty of tA, zd:oup were assigned
to the Hungnam factory to increase the production of ammonium sulphate, sul-
phuric acid, carbiae, and other chemicals needed for trade with Uanchuria.
Other members of the technical group were employed at the aonsan Shipyard,
in October, and in the Chongjin and Pyongyang Railroad Bureaus. Still
others were assigned to the nevi arsenal under oonstruction in Pyongyang and
temporally operating in the basement of KILT Il-song University in Yurim-ni
( )0***
7. If the Japanese technicians succeed in stepping up production the North
Korean government plans to bring increasing numbers of them from Japan to
serve in northern industry?
25X1A
Comven : For a discussion of official Korean foreign trade regrown- 25X1A
25X1A lotion, see
MILCorrr,dat: KWON Tlae-hyong later left the Korean Cumercial Company
now working for the Korean Beer2ViTy in Pyongyang.
25X1X
MAgglEgsatra_ratt MEM= this factory is to manufacture weapons
for the invasion of South Korea. This installation is not to be confused
with the large Pyongyang ordnance factory whichhs7been operating in Py0r4.3-
yang.for a considerable time; see
CONF 4WTAt
Approved For Release 2000/0cPPINATL4100457R004600240002-7