Swiss foreign minister talks political ties on rare visit to North Korea

What the report says

Switzerland has formally reopened its diplomatic office in North Korea, marking a renewed effort to maintain a direct channel with Pyongyang after the post closed in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The development came as Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis completed a two-day visit to North Korea, a rare trip by a Swiss government minister and the first in more than two decades, according to Al Jazeera’s report.

Cassis said he discussed with North Korean officials ways to regularise political relations and reestablish dialogue. He met Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui and Jo Yong Won, a secretary of the ruling Workers’ Party, and also said the talks touched on security on the Korean Peninsula and wider Eurasian security issues. Al Jazeera reported that there was no public indication of a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The Swiss foreign ministry said the office, which reopened on October 19 and reports to the Swiss embassy in Beijing, is intended to support political dialogue and direct contacts with North Korean authorities. It will not be headed by an ambassador. Switzerland has maintained a limited but longstanding role on the Korean Peninsula, including participation in the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission, and Bern has said it wants to keep engaging despite high tensions and restricted international contact with North Korea. Cassis later travelled to South Korea as part of the same regional trip.