Polish officials are visiting Pyongyang as they seek to restore their country’s permanent diplomatic presence in North Korea, the Foreign Ministry in Warsaw said on Friday. The move by Poland comes after international tensions recently escalated amid reports that North Korea has deployed troops to help Russia fight its war against Ukraine. Paweł Wroński, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry in Warsaw, told TVP World: “North Korea is now a very important country. Poland is one of the very few countries that has maintained and maintains these relations. “We believe that from the point of view of Polish and European foreign policy, it is worth checking whether it is possible to maintain these contacts.” The operations of the Polish embassy in Pyongyang were suspended in December 2020 after North Korea announced the complete closure of its borders due to the Covid pandemic. Sweden is the only other Western country present in Pyongyang, according to the Foreign Ministry in Warsaw. Wroński said that the Polish move had been agreed with other nations. “Other countries know about it, and in fact, they very much support this move by our diplomats.” He added: “There is a principle that embassies are not only in those countries with which we have good relations... We try to maintain relations with countries where we can learn something important.” The Foreign Ministry in Warsaw said the Polish embassy to Pyongyang “is resuming work in a temporary chancery and with limited personnel” headed by a chargé d’affaires.
