Representatives of Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden in Pyongyang can restore their work after temporary termination through the Covid-19 pandemic. The German delegation made the first visit to the capital of North Korea, Pyongyan, since the closing of the Embassy in March 2020. According to February 28, the German diplomats team arrived in Pyongyan for technical evaluation of the territory of the diplomatic institution. However, the final decision to restore the work of the embassy has not yet been made.
At the same time, the UK also discusses the possibility of returning diplomats to North Korea, which was evacuated in May 2020. The spokesman for the UK Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that negotiations with the North Korean leadership through the Embassy in London regarding the organization of the nearest visit of the British Technical and Diplomatic Group. "We are grateful for the opportunity to go back to Pyongyan and congratulate North Korea's steps to restore contacts," he added.
North Korea is now represented by nine foreign embassies, but many other embassies have been closed due to the inability to replace staff due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, restrictions on trips and large -scale walls on the border introduced by North Korea according to one of the strictest control measures in the world complicated the situation. Only Russia, China, Mongolia and Cuba were able to rotate staff since last year.
With regard to Sweden, a special envoy on the Korean Peninsula noted some progress in returning Swedish diplomats to Pyongyan, but refrained from the details due to the confidentiality of discussions. "There are some positive changes, and we hope that we will be able to return to the work of our embassy in the near future," he said. One anonymous diplomat also noted that before restoring the work of the embassy it will be necessary to inspect closed objects for possible listening.
