Switzerland reopens Pyongyang office as Cassis holds political talks

Switzerland reopened its diplomatic office in Pyongyang as Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis arrived in North Korea and prepared for political talks with North Korean officials. The visit brings a Swiss government presence back to the North Korean capital in a political and diplomatic capacity, according to the Korea Times. Cassis arrived on Thursday, the Korea Times reported.

The Swiss government had said he would make a two-day trip beginning Thursday, attend the office’s official reopening and hold political talks with North Korean officials. The article also reports North Korea’s state media said Cassis had arrived on Friday, giving a different day for the arrival announcement than the Thursday arrival reported in the article’s opening account.

Switzerland’s government described the visit as part of its commitment to peace on the Korean Peninsula. The Korea Times quoted the government’s statement as calling that commitment “long-standing.” The account does not provide further detail about the planned political talks or identify specific subjects for discussion.

The reopened office is Switzerland’s first political and diplomatic installation in Pyongyang since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1974. Switzerland had opened a humanitarian cooperation office in the city in 1997, but it closed in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, the Korea Times reported.

Cassis was scheduled to travel to Seoul after his North Korea visit and meet South Korean government officials, according to the Swiss government release described by the Korea Times. The article does not give a date for that meeting or name the officials expected to attend. Al Jazeera’s headline also describes Cassis’s visit as a rare trip involving talks on political ties.

Reuters’s headline says he discussed security issues with North Korea, while The Local Switzerland’s headline characterizes the visit as talks on closer ties. Those headlines identify different aspects of the visit but do not provide further detail about the discussions.

Herald Economy’s headline says South Korean official Wi Sung-lac met Cassis after the North Korea visit and exchanged views on the situation on the peninsula.