February 25, 2008 -- North Korea is tearing down anti-American posters that line its capital ahead of the New York Philharmonic's unprecedented visit, the ensemble's president said yesterday.
Musicians preparing for the trip, which starts today, said they hoped personal contacts with North Koreans could help bring the countries closer. But some worried their performance tomorrow would be misused for propaganda in a country that remains technically at war with the United States.
The Philharmonic's president and executive director, Zarin Mehta, said a diplomat based in Pyongyang told the orchestra the North was removing some of the anti-American propaganda earlier seen on streets of the capital, Pyongyang.
North Korea's state-controlled media kept up its usual vitriol yesterday, condemning "US warmongers" for staging military exercises with South Korea.
It was not known whether North Korean leader Kim Jong Il would attend the concert, and Philharmonic spokesman Eric Latzky said the group had not directly extended an invitation to him.
