Experts point to economic difficulties from prolonged international sanctions, but the closures may signal a possible change in North Korea's foreign policy that is more focused on Moscow and Beijing.
A North Korean flag flutters in North Korea's village Gijungdong as seen from a South Korean observation post inside the demilitarized zone in Paju, South Korea on March 3, 2023. North Korea confirmed that it's closing some of its diplomatic missions abroad.A North Korean flag flutters in North Korea's village Gijungdong as seen from a South Korean observation post inside the demilitarized zone in Paju, South Korea on March 3, 2023.
Tae Yongho, the South Korean lawmaker with the ruling People Power Party who served as the North Korean deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom until his defection in 2016, said in a press conference last week that it is the first time North Korean foreign missions are closing in mass since the economic crisis in the 1990s that followed the fall of the Soviet Union.
With the economic blockade closing in, North Korea's economy recorded negative growth in much of the past decade, according toVanishing sources of foreign currency revenue would directly impact North Korean missions abroad, which have to sustain themselves under theNorth Korean foreign missions and diplomats have long been accused of involvement in smuggling and other illicit trade activities...
Many of the North Korean missions are in countries of the former Eastern Bloc and non-aligned states. Through these relations, North Korea has historically sought to escape diplomatic isolation through international recognition and, over time, generate foreign currency revenues.
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