North Korea is preparing to resume foreign diplomatic activity as Kim Jong Un gradually reopens the isolated country that was sealed off for three years during the coronavirus pandemic.Pyongyang is expected to rotate its foreign envoys in the coming months following a suspension of almost all diplomatic travel imposed at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Diplomats and analysts said the renewed presence of North Korean officials abroad would increase engagement with Pyongyang and allow greater insight into the isolated regime, which has had limited contact with the outside world during the pandemic and seen talks with the US on winding down its nuclear programme stalled.
North Korean officials recently resumed travelling to neighbouring Vladivostok, in Russia’s Far East, and Beijing, laying the groundwork for greater engagement with the regime’s cornerstone allies, the people said.