Germany–North Korea relations

Germany–North Korea relations

Germany	North Korea

Germany–North Korea relations are the bilateral relations between Germany and North Korea. During the Cold War, East Germany maintained diplomatic relations only with North Korea, while West Germany maintained diplomatic relations only with South Korea. East Germany ceased to exist upon German reunification, which meant that diplomatic relations no longer existed between Germany and North Korea. The two countries appointed protecting powers to represent their interests in the other country, Sweden being the protecting power for Germany, and China being the protecting power for North Korea.^[1]

Germany and North Korea established diplomatic relations with each other in 2001.^[1] The German embassy in Pyongyang remains in the old East German embassy compound, which is now shared with the Swedish and British embassies.

Since the establishment of diplomatic relations, there have been no visits of government delegations at ministerial level to Germany or North Korea. However, there have been several official visits to North Korea by members of the German Bundestag.

According to a 2013 BBC World Service Poll, only 3% of Germans view North Korea's influence positively, with 90% expressing a negative view.^[2]

References

1. "Bilateral Relations, Korea (Democratic People's Republic of)". Federal Foreign Office (Germany). April 2015.
2. 2013 World Service Poll BBC