Seoul: UNESCO has called on South Korea to take strong action over a high-rise redevelopment project near Seoul's Jongmyo Shrine, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The organization warned that the construction could threaten the integrity of the historic complex, according to the nation's heritage chief, Huh Min.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Huh Min, head of the Korea Heritage Service (KHS), said the UN agency's World Heritage Center sent an official letter expressing concern over Seoul's plan to allow tall buildings in Sewun District 4, located directly across from the royal Confucian shrine. Jongmyo is a significant heritage site where the ancestral tablets of the Joseon Dynasty's royal family are enshrined, and it was one of Korea's first UNESCO World Heritage sites, designated in 1995.

Huh informed reporters at the National Palace Museum in Seoul that UNESCO explicitly warned the project could damage the surrounding landscape of Jongmyo and recommended that Seoul conduct a Heritage Impact Assessment. The document, described as a "diplomatic and official communication," was delivered to the KHS through South Korea's permanent delegation to UNESCO. The World Heritage Center oversees administrative matters related to World Heritage site protection.

UNESCO advised that the Seoul metropolitan government's approval of the redevelopment project be suspended until a positive review of the impact assessment is completed by the agency and its advisory bodies. The project has incited a standoff between the central government and Seoul's metropolitan government over the city's decision to allow buildings up to 145 meters tall, more than twice the former height limit, in the redevelopment zone.

The central government argues that such high-rises would undermine the shrine's historical landscape, whereas the city claims the project would improve the surroundings by creating a broad green space. During the briefing, the KHS also presented computer simulations showing how 145-meter structures would appear from key viewpoints, including the shrine's main hall, Jeongjeon, its front gate, and the sky above it.

Huh called the evaluation process "an internationally recognized preservation mechanism under UNESCO guidelines" and urged the local government, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and the KHS to form a joint consultation body "as soon as possible" to address the issue.