Korean Friendship Association

The Korean Friendship Association (KFA) is a Spain-based organization dedicated to building international contacts with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). It is also known in Spanish as Asociación de Amistad con Corea and in Korean as 조선과의 친선협회. Although the association was formally registered in Spain in November 2000, reference material states that it had operated there since 1990. Its network is described as extending to approximately 120 countries, with official delegates appointed in 34 countries. The association presents itself as a non-governmental friendship and cultural organization. Its stated objectives include presenting what it regards as the reality of North Korea to overseas audiences, defending the country's independence and socialist system, learning about Korean culture and history, and supporting the peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula. It publishes or distributes North Korea-related material, including political essays, tourism information, cultural content, and links to Korean-language learning resources. Its online forum has been administered from Europe and provides a space for discussion from a perspective broadly sympathetic to the North Korean state. A major part of the KFA's public activity is arranging or facilitating travel delegations to North Korea. Reference accounts describe these trips as an important attraction for members and as providing access to state-organized itineraries and comparatively privileged service. The association's national groups are described as local branches or friendship circles rather than diplomatic missions. They are not consulates, and available descriptions state that they do not generally provide intelligence services or direct monetary support to the North Korean government. The organization is instead presented as a transnational network coordinated through official delegates and an international committee. The KFA has attracted sustained criticism because of its close relationship with North Korean official institutions and its strongly favorable portrayal of the country. Critics, including journalists and North Korea researchers, have characterized it as part of the DPRK's international soft-power or propaganda network. The association disputes or rejects many mainstream accounts of human-rights abuses in North Korea, including claims concerning political prison camps. Critics argue that its travel programs and publications emphasize carefully managed positive experiences while excluding poverty, repression, food insecurity, and other negative conditions. The association's president is identified in reference material as Alejandro Cao de Benós de Les y Pérez, a Spanish citizen and prominent public advocate for North Korea. The same material states that he is the only person paid a salary by the organization and alleges that membership fees have generally been deposited into accounts in his name in several European countries. These claims contributed to questions about the KFA's financial practices and institutional independence. Exact budgets, revenue figures, and current legal or financial arrangements are not established by the supplied sources. The organization received renewed scrutiny after the 2020 release of the documentary The Mole: Undercover in North Korea. The film follows Danish participant Ulrich Larsen, who spent years undercover within the KFA network while investigating alleged links between North Korean officials, the association, and illicit efforts to evade international sanctions. The documentary depicts discussions involving weapons exports and sanctions circumvention. The film and related reporting intensified debate over whether the KFA functions primarily as a friendship association, a propaganda channel, a travel facilitator, or an access point for more sensitive dealings. The available material does not establish that every KFA member or national branch participated in illegal conduct.

The Korean Friendship Association developed as a Spain-based network for supporters and interlocutors of North Korea. Reference material places its presence in Spain as early as 1990, while its formal registration occurred in November 2000. The distinction between the earlier activity and the later registration is significant because the organization has operated through a mixture of a central international structure, country delegates, and local friendship groups rather than as a conventional commercial corporation. From its early years, the KFA sought to connect overseas visitors and sympathizers with North Korean cultural and political themes. Its declared mission has included presenting North Korea to international audiences, defending the country's independence and socialist construction, studying Korean history and culture, and supporting peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula. These aims put the organization within a broader tradition of international friendship associations linked to socialist states, although researchers cited in the reference material argue that such bodies now serve more domestic public-relations purposes for North Korea than the international socialist movement they once represented. The KFA expanded into a wide international network. It is described as operating in roughly 120 countries and having official delegates in 34. The delegates coordinate national activities, while secretaries and an international organization committee direct work across the network. The organization has been characterized as comparatively radical among North Korea friendship associations because of its consistently favorable interpretation of the DPRK and its willingness to challenge widely reported accounts of political repression and human-rights violations. Its activities have included seminars, online information services, political essays, cultural materials, tourism guidance, discussion forums, and links to Korean-language education. Travel to North Korea became one of its most visible functions. Members and visitors could join organized delegations whose schedules and access were arranged within the North Korean state tourism system. Analysts have described these visits as a central motivation for membership and have noted that participants commonly receive a carefully managed view of the country. The KFA's public image has been shaped especially by its president, Alejandro Cao de Benós de Les y Pérez, a Spanish citizen who has acted as a prominent spokesperson and intermediary for North Korea. Reference material states that he is the organization's only salaried worker and alleges that fees were deposited into accounts held in his name across Europe. A 2015 NK News investigation questioned the organization's commercial practices and integrity. The available references do not provide verified financial statements or a complete account of its legal structure, so the scale and precise nature of these arrangements remain unclear. Criticism of the KFA has been consistent. Journalists and scholars have described it as a component of North Korea's international propaganda or soft-power system. Critics contend that its publications and travel programs present an edited version of the country, highlighting hospitality, cultural performances, leisure, and official achievements while omitting poverty, detention, political coercion, and other subjects that are difficult to examine during controlled visits. The KFA's rejection of reports about human-rights abuses, including the existence of North Korean concentration camps, has further polarized discussion of its role. The organization came under particularly intense scrutiny through the activities of Ulrich Larsen, a Danish member who operated undercover for approximately ten years. Larsen's experience became the basis for Mads Brügger's 2020 documentary The Mole: Undercover in North Korea. The film portrays Larsen's contacts with Cao de Benós and North Korean officials and includes discussions about potential weapons transactions and methods for bypassing international sanctions. The documentary did not establish that all KFA branches or members were involved in such activity, but it raised serious questions about the access that the network could provide to North Korean representatives and about the boundary between advocacy, tourism, and covert or illicit business. The KFA remains an active organization according to the supplied material, but reliable public information about its current finances, membership, delegate roster, and governance is limited. It is best understood as an international advocacy, friendship, cultural-exchange, and travel network closely aligned with the North Korean government rather than as a conventional consumer brand or independently funded civil-society association.

• 2020

  The Mole documentary released

  [2]The Mole: Undercover in North Koreaen.wikipedia.org

  The release of The Mole: Undercover in North Korea brought international attention to Ulrich Larsen's undercover work inside the KFA and to alleged sanctions-evasion discussions involving North Korean officials.

• 2015

  Financial and commercial practices investigated

  [1]Korean Friendship Associationen.wikipedia.org

  NK News published an investigation questioning the association's commercial practices and institutional integrity.

• 2000

  Formal registration in Spain

  [1]Korean Friendship Associationen.wikipedia.org

  The Korean Friendship Association was officially registered in Spain in November.

• 1990

  KFA presence reported in Spain

  [1]Korean Friendship Associationen.wikipedia.org

  Reference material states that the organization had existed in Spain since this year, before its later formal registration.

A transnational pro-North Korean friendship and cultural-exchange network positioned as an alternative source of information about North Korea, with activities spanning advocacy, publications, online discussion, and organized travel.

• Media and advocacy

  North Korea information and political publications

  The KFA distributes or hosts essays, informational material, and political commentary presenting North Korea from a perspective sympathetic to the DPRK government. The material is intended to challenge mainstream reporting and explain North Korean state positions, although critics argue that it provides a selective and highly favorable account of the country.

• Travel coordination

  North Korea travel delegations

  The association organizes or facilitates group visits to North Korea through the country's controlled tourism system. Travel is described as a major reason some people join the organization, with participants receiving planned itineraries and access to official sites, cultural events, and state-managed hospitality.

• Online community

  KFA online forum and cultural resources

  KFA-associated online resources include a Europe-hosted forum, North Korea-related cultural material, and links to Korean-language learning websites. These services support the association's stated goal of fostering international interest in Korean culture and facilitating discussion from a pro-DPRK viewpoint.

• 2020

  The Mole and alleged sanctions-evasion activity

  The documentary The Mole: Undercover in North Korea portrayed undercover participant Ulrich Larsen's contacts with KFA leadership and North Korean officials. It showed discussions concerning possible weapons exports and methods of evading international sanctions, prompting renewed scrutiny of the organization's access and relationships.

  Source

• 2015

  Questions over commercial practices and financial integrity

  An NK News investigation questioned the KFA's commercial practices and integrity. Reference material also reports claims that membership fees were generally deposited into accounts in the name of President Alejandro Cao de Benós in several European countries, while describing him as the only salaried person in the organization. No verified financial figures are available in the supplied sources.

  Source

• Criticism over propaganda and human-rights positions

  Journalists and researchers have criticized the KFA for presenting an idealized version of North Korea, denying or disputing reports of serious human-rights abuses, and functioning as a channel for North Korean propaganda or soft power.

  Source

Read more

• International North Korea friendship and cultural advocacy

  International

  Through national branches, official delegates, online publications, seminars, and cultural activities, the KFA promotes friendship with North Korea and disseminates interpretations aligned with the North Korean government's political positions.

  Outcome. The network expanded to approximately 120 countries, although analysts and critics dispute its independence and describe it as part of North Korea's international soft-power system.

  Source
• North Korea group travel program

  International · North Korea

  The KFA promotes and coordinates delegations to North Korea, presenting travel as a way for members to experience the country and develop direct friendship links.

  Outcome. Travel became one of the association's most visible activities and a reported motivation for membership, while critics argue that the visits offer a tightly controlled and selectively positive view of North Korea.

  Source

• Build a worldwide delegate networkStrategy

  Background

  The association sought to extend North Korea friendship activities beyond Spain through national organizations and appointed representatives.

  Action taken

  It developed a network described as operating in approximately 120 countries, with official delegates in 34 countries and international secretaries coordinating activities.

  Aftermath

  The network increased the KFA's international reach but also reinforced criticism that it operates as part of North Korea's global propaganda and soft-power infrastructure.

  Source

• Make organized travel a central membership activityStrategy

  Background

  International members sought direct access to North Korea, where independent travel and unsupervised political contact are highly restricted.

  Action taken

  The KFA organized travel delegations and promoted visits conducted through North Korea's official tourism arrangements.

  Aftermath

  Travel became a prominent source of member interest while attracting criticism that visitors received a carefully curated view of the country.

  Source

1. 1Korean Friendship Associationen.wikipedia.org
2. 2The Mole: Undercover in North Koreaen.wikipedia.org
3. 3Korean Friendship Association official websitekorea-dpr.com