North Korean Embassy in Berlin
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| State level | bilateral | ||
| Position of the authority |
Embassy |
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| Supervisory authority (s) |
Foreign Ministry |
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| Consist | since 1954 between 1990 and 2000 dissolved 2001 new contract |
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| Headquarters |
 Berlin , Glinkastrasse 5-7 |
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| ambassador | Pak Nam Jong | ||
| Website | (no) | ||
The North Korean Embassy in Berlin is the headquarters of the diplomatic mission of the People's Republic of Korea in Germany . It is located at Glinkastraße 5–7 in the Berlin district of Mitte in the district of the same name .
Location, building and history
In 1954 the GDR established diplomatic relations with the Korean People's Democratic Republic. The KVDR embassy was initially located at Gundelfinger Strasse 38 in Berlin-Karlshorst, and from 1958 at Dorotheastrasse 4 in the same district. In 1975 she moved to the newly built building at Glinkastraße 5/7 in Berlin-Mitte.
Photo: Joachim Spremberg
The embassy building is in the former embassy district of East Berlin . This here until its destruction during World War II existing Kaiserhof was the late 1940s enttrümmert and leveled the area.
The Korean People's Democratic Republic had its embassy built here between 1969 and 1975. In front of the former chancellery wing on Glinkastraße, the embassy grounds include a piece of the former location of the Trinity Church , which was also destroyed in the war , the floor plan of which, as far as it is outside the embassy property, is indicated by colored stones in the pavement in front of it. In addition, the embassy area includes a piece of the route of the Mauerstraße , the course of which is interrupted here.
In addition to the embassy, the Korean trade agency was also housed in the building. Originally more than 100 employees worked there, after the fall of the Wall in 1989 the number fell to around 10.
No diplomatic relations existed with the old Federal Republic until 1990.
With German unification in 1990, the embassy was closed and converted into an office for the protection of the interests of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea ; The People's Republic of China acted as protecting power . At the same time, the former GDR embassy in Pyongyang was converted into an interest group for the Federal Republic of Germany ; the Kingdom of Sweden acted as protecting power .
On March 1, 2001, Germany and North Korea established regular diplomatic relations, but so far there have been no visits by German government delegations at ministerial level to North Korea. There are no agreements on financial, economic, scientific or technological cooperation. In October 2002 an air transport agreement and an investment promotion and protection agreement were initialed , the signature of which is suspended.
The building itself is a prefabricated building with several floors. An outbuilding along Mohrenstrasse has served as the actual embassy since the 2000s, while the embassy leases the office wing to various institutions. The largest user was a hostel until 2020 .
ambassador
In the DDR
- 1954-1957: Pak Kil Jon
- 1957-1961: Pak Ir Jen
- 1961-1966: Kwon Jeng Tae
- 1966-1969: Ro Su Ek
- 1969-1977: Ri Dzang Su
- 1977-1979: Kim Guk Hun
- 1980-1985: Pak Hion Bo
- 1985-1990: Pak Jong Chan
In the Federal Republic
- 2006-2011: Hong Chang Il
- 2011–2017: Ri Si Hong
- since 2017: Pak Nam Jong
Conflicts
Tax evasion and violation of UN sanctions
The hostel, which North Korea has leased on its embassy premises since at least 2004, recently generated monthly rental income of 40,000 euros; not including the convention center. Due to increased sanctions by the United Nations as a reaction to the North Korean nuclear weapons program , it should be closed by the federal government so that North Korea cannot generate any financial income in this way. The embassy did not pay taxes and now owes the German tax authorities around 10 million euros. After the federal government threatened criminal proceedings, an additional tax payment in installments was agreed: 7,000 euros are paid monthly.
The hostel was rented to an operator who paid the North Koreans a monthly rent of € 38,000 . In 2018, a Berlin district court banned the property from operating as it violated the UN resolution 2321 prohibition of real estate transactions with North Korea. In February 2020, the Berlin-Mitte district office ordered the hostel to be closed immediately. The hostel ceased operations and was therefore forced to close.
Possible circumvention of import sanctions by means of the diplomatic mission in Germany
The ARD reported in February 2018 that u. a. the protection of the constitution assumes that the Berlin embassy will also be used to procure parts for the construction of military missiles.
Vigil
Since September 2009 there has been a weekly vigil in front of the embassy premises, which criticizes the human rights situation in North Korea .
See also
Web links
- North Korea in Berlin on botschaft-konsulat.com.
Individual evidence
- ^ Close alliance between the GDR and People's Korea. In: Berliner Zeitung , May 13, 1954, p. 1.
- ^ Telephone book East Berlin 1955 , p. 19.
- ↑ Telephone book East Berlin 1959 , p. 24.
- ^ Telephone book East Berlin 1977 , p. 69.
- ↑ North Korea is using the old message again. In: Berliner Zeitung , March 8, 2001.
- ↑ Communication: Relations between North Korea and Germany (March 2011) on the homepage of the Federal Foreign Office , accessed on August 20, 2011.
- ↑ site of the City Hostel Berlin
- ↑ Embassy of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea at www.berlin-wilhelmstrasse.de
- ↑ Accreditation of ambassadors, September 2, 2011 at www.bundespräsident.de
- ↑ Accreditation of ambassadors, April 24, 2017 at www.bundespräsident.de
- ↑ Federal government wants to close city hostel in North Korea's embassy. In: Der Tagesspiegel , May 10, 2017.
- ↑ North Korea owes the German tax authorities millions. In: www.sueddeutsche.de. May 17, 2017, accessed February 1, 2020 .
- ^ Embassy grounds of North Korea: Berlin wants to close "City Hostel" on Tagesschau.de, accessed in February 2020
- ↑ Hostel on North Korea's embassy grounds is closed. In: Berliner Morgenpost , May 29, 2020.
- ↑ North Korea allegedly uses the embassy in Berlin to procure weapons. In: www.spiegel.de. February 3, 2018, accessed February 1, 2020 .
Coordinates: 52 ° 30 '40.7 " N , 13 ° 23' 10.4" E