Senior Chosun Workers’ Party secretary Kang Sok Ju’s ten-day
visit to four countries in Europe, a symbolic move arousing a great deal of
speculation, recently ended but bore few results, according to a Voice of
America [VOA] reported on September 16th [Korea time].
Kang’s tour schedule included visits to Germany, Belgium,
Switzerland, and Italy in an attempt to breakthrough the North’s isolation from
international society, but excluding Switzerland, the senior diplomat was
unable to meet with any high-level officials during the trip.
The first leg of his trip was Germany, where he met the
Chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany.
Meetings with high-level officials also fell through in
Belgium, Kang’s next destination, where he was unable to make contact with any
of the nation’s foreign policy officials. Instead, he met with Elmar Brok, the
German chairman of the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, and
the EU Special Representative for Human Rights, Stavros Lambrinidis, which saw
the reiteration of concerns over North Korea’s human rights issues and nuclear
weapons development.
Kang did secure a meeting with State Secretary of Foreign
Affairs, Yves Rossier, during his stay in Switzerland.; however, the Swiss
Foreign Ministry told VOA that this was simply a courtesy meeting between
nations sharing diplomatic relations [the trip coincided with the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries].
Italy verified that no officials from its foreign ministry
met with the North Korean Party International Secretary.
VOA reported that Europe’s stance is likely to remain unchanged
until North Korea takes steps to improve its poor human rights record and cease
its nuclear ambitions.
