Belarus will open an embassy in North Korea and work on a visa-free travel agreement, following instructions from Alyaksandr Lukashenka after his visit to Kim Jong Un, Foreign Minister Maksim Ryzhankou said.
“Specific tasks have been set. First, to open our embassy here in response to the DPRK embassy that has long existed in Belarus. Second, to accelerate work on an agreement on visa-free travel for citizens. More broadly, based on the signed treaty on friendship and cooperation, we need to review the full range of areas where we can quickly expand cooperation and support each other in achieving our development goals,” he said, as cited by BelTA.
According to him, promising areas of cooperation include healthcare, education, and agriculture. Ryzhankou noted that Minsk can “lend a shoulder” to Pyongyang in matters of food security, while North Korea is also interested in Belarus’s healthcare expertise.
International issues were also discussed during the visit.
“We covered all areas, from developments in the Middle East and the Iranian case to issues related to Russia’s special military operation and relations with the world’s major powers. There are also historical aspects that connect our countries.
If we look at history, we are very similar in that we won our independence and sovereignty through hard struggle and great losses. Today, in following our own development path, we also have to resist those who would prefer us to live differently. The essence of our foreign policy talks is not about forming alliances against anyone. The main goal is to consistently develop relations between two friendly nations and expand contacts between businesses and citizens,” he said.
Ryzhankou also stated that there was immediate “chemistry” between Lukashenka and Kim Jong Un.
“The spirit of the talks was extremely sincere and friendly. This was based on the ‘chemistry’ that immediately emerged between the leaders of the two countries.
I am very pleased that this initial contact and mutual understanding developed so quickly. It even felt at times as though one leader would begin a sentence and the other would finish it without losing the meaning. We did not expect the visit to involve such deep engagement by the North Korean leader at every stage, but that is what happened,” he added.
According to the minister, Kim Jong Un’s participation in Lukashenka’s wreath-laying ceremony at the Liberation Monument had not originally been planned.
Ryzhankou also praised the concert organized for Lukashenka by the host side.
“The president said that some Belarusian songs were performed even better than at home. It was a vivid concert in which you could feel the Belarusian spirit. They managed to find common threads through songs and compositions, showing that we share a similar outlook on life, both in everyday terms and culturally. At the core are patriotism, love for the homeland and peace, and reliance on our own strength,” he said.
“The only thing left is not to let our leaders down in implementing the tasks they have set,” the minister concluded.
