Foreign diplomatic missions continue their operations in Pyongyang

Posted on : 2013-04-08 15:46 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
US postpones their own ICMB test launch out of consideration over Korean tensions
 Apr. 6. North Korea recently asked foreign embassies to submit their plans for evacuation in case of a war. (AFP/Yonhap News)
Apr. 6. North Korea recently asked foreign embassies to submit their plans for evacuation in case of a war. (AFP/Yonhap News)

By Park Byong-su and Jung E-gil, staff reporter

The foreign embassies in Pyongyang are continuing with normal operations despite having been asked by North Korea to submit evacuation plans. Following the US delay of a planned missile test-launch out of fear of provoking North Korea, the mood in Pyongyang remains as quiet and peaceful as ever, and foreign tours are continuing, reports say.

It is being reported that Germany, the UK, and some other members of the European Union (EU) are carefully deliberating safety issues as they maintain their diplomatic missions in Pyongyang.

“We are constantly assessing our embassy’s safety and its vulnerability to threats,” the Germany Foreign Ministry said in a statement released on Apr. 6. “For now, we believe that the embassy staff can continue to fulfill their duties.”

“In recent weeks, the North Korean Government has raised tensions on the Korean peninsula and the wider region through a series of public statements and other provocations,” said a spokesperson for the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office in a published statement. “No decisions have been taken, and we have no immediate plans to withdraw our Embassy.”

Nor do UN agencies have any known plans to leave Pyongyang. “UN staff in (North Korea) remain engaged in their humanitarian and development work throughout the country,” said UN spokesperson Martin Nesirky.

The diplomatic missions in Pyongyang include 24 embassies and 2 consulates general, and there are also 6 offices run by international organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO).

“China is gravely concerned about the growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula,” said Hong Lei, spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, in a statement posted on the ministry’s website on Apr. 7. “The Chinese government has asked the DPRK side to earnestly protect the safety of Chinese missions in the country in accordance with international law and international norms such as the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.”

“As far as I know, Chinese missions in the DPRK are still under normal operation,” Hong said.

The remarks seem to indicate that China intends to keep its diplomatic offices open in North Korea and continue commercial activity.

“China is the most important factor here,” said a senior South Korea Ministry of Foreign Affairs official. “The fact that they are staying in Pyongyang will help to calm the furor in diplomatic missions after North Korea’s official warning to evacuate personnel.”

North Korea’s surprise move to recommend that foreign diplomatic offices to submit their evacuation plans is underlining the danger of the situation, but the mood in Pyongyang is said to be so tranquil that the tension isn’t noticeable.

“No military vehicles or soldiers can be seen on the streets of Pyongyang, and nothing is out of the ordinary,” said Roberto Colin, Brazilian ambassador to North Korea, in a telephone interview with Brazilian daily Folha de S. Paulo, according to a report printed on Apr. 6. “The international organizations represented in Pyongyang have not detected any unusual signs, either.”

Foreign tourist trips are also taking place as normal, Yonhap News Agency reported.

“Our partners in state-run travel agencies in North Korea are continuing to receive tourists,” said an employee with Koryo Tours, located in Beijing, China. “We are not detecting any particularly tense mood on the ground in North Korea.”

Meanwhile, the US delayed a scheduled test-launch of a ballistic missile in order to avoid higher tensions on the Korean peninsula. The US Defense Department delayed the test launch of the Minuteman 3 ICBM, which had been scheduled for next week, the BBC reported on Apr. 7.

One official at the Pentagon indicated that the US hopes to avoid any misunderstanding or miscalculation by North Korea that might be caused by the test launch. The BBC reported that the test might be postponed until May. The US test delay is being viewed as part of a measure to relieve tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Quoting a UK diplomat, Russia’s ITAR-TASS wire agency reported on Apr. 6 that North Korea is requesting that President Barack Obama personally call Kim Jong-un as a precondition for calming the crisis on the Korean peninsula.

 

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

button that move to original korean article (클릭시 원문으로 이동하는 버튼)

Related stories