European countries prepare to reopen embassies in North Korea

Reuters reported on February 28 that a delegation from the German Foreign Ministry is currently in the North Korean capital Pyongyang on a trip to conduct technical checks before the embassy can reopen.

"They plan to inspect the site where the German Embassy is located within a few days," a German Foreign Ministry spokesman said, noting that Berlin had not yet decided on resuming operations at the diplomatic mission that closed in March 2020.

Many embassies in Pyongyang have closed because they have been unable to rotate staff or transport supplies during the Covid-19 pandemic. North Korea has imposed some of the world’s strictest anti-epidemic measures and has only recently begun to ease international travel restrictions.

A view of a celebration in Pyongyang in early February

Reuters quoted a British Foreign Office spokesman as saying that London was also looking to send a delegation to Pyongyang. Britain closed its embassy and withdrew all diplomatic staff from North Korea in May 2020.

"We are pleased that some diplomats have returned to Pyongyang and welcome the move by North Korea to reopen its borders... We are in discussions with the North Korean government through their embassy in London to promptly arrange a visit by a British diplomatic-technical delegation," the spokesman said.

A British Foreign Office spokesman also revealed that London has called on Pyongyang to allow the international community, including all diplomats, United Nations agencies and non-governmental humanitarian organizations, to return to North Korea.

Peter Semneby, Sweden's special envoy for the Korean Peninsula, told Reuters there had been some progress in efforts to return Swedish diplomats to Pyongyang, but declined to give details due to the sensitivity of the discussions.

"There have been some developments and we hope to be able to re-establish our embassy soon," Reuters quoted Mr. Semneby as saying.

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One diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, noted that the closed facilities would need to be cleaned for any eavesdropping devices, as well as exterminated for pests and renovated after a period of abandonment.

According to NK Pro, a Seoul-based research organization specializing in monitoring North Korea, as of January 2023, nine countries have operating embassies in Pyongyang.

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