Australia–North Korea relations

Australia–North Korea relations

Australia

North Korea

Australia–North Korea relations are the current and historical bilateral relations between Australia and North Korea.

The two countries nominally have diplomatic relations, though as of 2013 neither Australia nor North Korea has an official diplomatic presence in the other country. Instead, diplomatic relations between the two are handled by non-resident embassies. The Australian embassy in Seoul manages relations with North Korea, whereas the DPRK embassy in Jakarta is responsible for their relations with Australia.[1] Generally the relations are stressed, due to disputes such as over the North Korean nuclear program.

According to a 2013 BBC World Service Poll, only 7% of Australians view North Korea's influence positively, with 85% expressing a negative view.[2]

History

Monthly value of Australian merchandise exports to North Korea (A$ millions) since 1988
Monthly value of North Korean merchandise exports to Australia (A$ millions) since 1988

In 2003, in an event called Pong Su incident, the North Korean ship Pong Su was discovered in the Australian waters while its crew members were smuggling illegal drugs. The ship attempted an escape and was taken over by the Australian commandos after four days chase.

In January 2008, North Korea closed its embassy in Canberra. In January 2013, North Korea requested permission to reopen its Canberra embassy, despite Australia supporting increased international sanctions against the country due to its continued nuclear regime.[3] This was declined by Australia in June 2013.[4]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Relations of Australia and North Korea.

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, October 21, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.