Band Favored by North Korean Leader Cancels Beijing Concerts

A staff member at the National Theater, where they were to perform, said the concerts had been canceled, with no reason given. The official declined to give his name. A person who had a ticket to one of the band’s invitation-only shows confirmed that he received a cancellation notice late Saturday afternoon. – China’s state-run media lit up with news source reports on the group’s visit in current days, with the official Xinhua News source Agency publishing a slideshow showing the women arriving in Beijing wearing military-style frocks & fur hats.

Officials at China’s foreign ministry were not immediately available for comments on Saturday.

Upon her arrival Friday morning at a luxury hotel in central Beijing where members of the band are staying, Hyon greeted reporters with a “Hello”.

There was no immediate word from North Korea on their sudden departure.

Some North Korean watchers speculated that Pyongyang might have canceled the performances because top Chinese leaders, including President Xi Jinping, declined to attend.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appeared to say on Thursday that his country has developed a thermonuclear bomb, a step up from the less-powerful atomic bomb, but the United States and outside experts are skeptical.

Britain’s deputy United Nations ambassador, Peter Wilson, said that if there is evidence that North Korea is committing new violations of United Nations resolutions, “then we will take action through the Security Council”.

China has traditionally been North Korea’s sole regional ally and main provider of trade and aid, but ties have become strained in recent years as Pyongyang has pressed ahead with internationally condemned nuclear tests.

However, Yang said news coverage about Hyon by the South Korean media might have had a negative impact on inter-Korean talks that were being held at North Korea’s border city of Kaesong.

The ensemble, whose members were reportedly handpicked by Kim, was formed in 2012.

It was unclear Saturday evening whether the band was still in Beijing.

“This is a diplomatic discourtesy”, said a 50-year-old invitee.