Madar (International) - Switzerland has formally reopened its diplomatic office in North Korea as Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis held talks in Pyongyang on normalising political relations between the two countries, Al Jazeera English reported on Friday, October 30, 2026, citing AFP and Reuters.
Cassis wrapped up on Friday a two-day visit, the first by a Swiss government minister in more than two decades, in which he discussed "regularising political relations and reestablishing a political dialogue", he wrote on X. Cassis, who is also Switzerland's vice president, met Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui and Jo Yong Won, a secretary of the ruling Workers' Party Central Committee.
The two sides also exchanged views on security on the Korean Peninsula and broader Eurasian security challenges, he said, describing Thursday's formal reopening of the office as a "new chapter" and a "concrete step towards strengthening direct dialogue".
The office, operational since October 19, will not have an ambassador and reports to the Swiss embassy in Beijing, which handles diplomatic and consular relations with North Korea. It had closed in March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. North Korea's state news agency KCNA confirmed Cassis's arrival on Thursday but gave no details on the purpose of the visit, and there has been no report of a meeting with leader Kim Jong Un.
The last Swiss Federal Council member to visit was then-Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey, in 2003. Cassis crossed into South Korea on Friday for the final leg of his trip, where talks will focus on security on the peninsula and prospects for easing regional tensions, according to the Swiss foreign ministry. Switzerland has served for more than 70 years on the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission on the peninsula.
