A North Korean propaganda Web site said Thursday that construction on an Internet communications bureau in Pyongyang began Wednesday.
 
The site dprktoday.com said that during the groundbreaking ceremony, the North's Chief of Post and Telecommunications Kim Kwang-chol said that modernizing communications and boosting the role of postal and communication services is a very important project for building a civilized socialist country.
 
A foreign official also gave congratulatory remarks during the ceremony and said that the Pyongyang Internet Communications Bureau will be world class and showcase the long-standing favorable relations with Thailand.
 
The Web site, however, did not speak of the facilities or duties of the new agency.
 
Meanwhile Radio Free Asia has reported that internet use is restricted except to foreign tourists at Pyongyang Sunan International Airport and at one or two hotels in the North Korean capital including Yanggakdo Hotel.