North Korea adopts 'Pyongyang time', delaying clocks by 30 minutes

North Korea announced on Friday the adoption of "Pyongyang Time", which will require a 30-minute delay of all watches in the country starting on August 15. With the decision, "Pyogyang Time" will be GMT + eight and a half hours, 30 minutes later than in South Korea, which has the same time as Japan, GMT + 9.

The time change in the country was approved on Wednesday by the North Korean Parliament, and will mark the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Korean peninsula from Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945). "The cruel Japanese imperialists committed many unforgivable crimes, even depriving Korea of ​​its standard time while treading its land without mercy, " the official KCNA said.

In the pre-colonial era, Korean time was GMT + 08H30, which was modified by Japan in 1912. The South Korean Unification Ministry estimated that change could complicate the situation, especially in Kaesong's Inter-Korean industrial zone. North Korean territory.

South Korea also changed its schedule in 1954 to mark the break with Japan, but retreated in 1961 when Park Chung-hee came to power via military coup. He decided that the two main US allies in the region - Seoul and Tokyo - should walk together.

Seoul, South Korea

Via InSummary.