---
title: "Rason special economic zone: North Korea Strategic Site Dossier | Save North Korea"
description: "Rason special economic zone (Economy): Free trade zone where North Korea borders both China and Russia. The rail and road link to Russia runs through here."
url: "https://savenorthkorea.org/places/rason"
language: en
translations:
  en: https://savenorthkorea.org/places/rason
  ko: https://savenorthkorea.org/ko/places/rason
  ja: https://savenorthkorea.org/ja/places/rason
  zh-Hans: https://savenorthkorea.org/zh/places/rason
---

[Key sites](https://savenorthkorea.org/places) · [Economy](https://savenorthkorea.org/places#economy)

 Economy 

# Rason special economic zone

Free trade zone where North Korea borders both China and Russia. The rail and road link to Russia runs through here.

![Rason special economic zone](https://savenorthkorea.org/img/places/rason.png)

[Photo via Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rason%5Fmontage.png)

Rason special economic zone · 42.3444°N, 130.3844°E [Google Maps ↗](https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3444,130.3844,15z/data=!3m1!1e3) · Imagery © Esri, Maxar, Earthstar Geographics 

[ Open on the intel map](https://savenorthkorea.org/map#sites=rason)

## Source

- [**Wikipedia** en.wikipedia.org ↗ ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rason)

## More economy sites

- [ © Esri, Maxar  Economy **Musan iron mine** One of the largest open-pit iron mines in Asia. Ore exports to China were a big source of hard currency before sanctions. ](https://savenorthkorea.org/places/musan-mine)
- [![Kaesong Industrial Region](https://savenorthkorea.org/img/places/kaesong-ic.jpg)  Economy **Kaesong Industrial Region** Closed since 2016 Joint zone where South Korean companies employed over 50,000 North Korean workers. Shut down in 2016\. The North blew up the nearby liaison office in 2020. ](https://savenorthkorea.org/places/kaesong-ic)
- [ © Esri, Maxar  Economy **Wonsan-Kalma resort** Opened 2025 Beach resort Kim Jong Un pushed for years, opened in 2025 mostly for Russian tourists. Also near a common missile launch area. ](https://savenorthkorea.org/places/kalma)