As inter-Korean relations cool, North Korea's ”brother nations” Cuba and South Korea grow closer

South Korea has decided to set up a temporary office in Cuba, a Latin American country with which it established diplomatic relations in February this year, as soon as this month. Preparations are underway to open an embassy in Cuba as soon as possible. Cuba has relations with North Korea.
The two countries have close ties and are known as "brother nations." One of the reasons behind South Korea's efforts to strengthen its ties with Cuba is its aim to weaken North Korea, which continues to engage in provocative acts.
Cuba is a republic located in Central America and the Caribbean. It is a one-party state led by the Communist Party of Cuba. Its capital is Havana, and its population is
The population is approximately 11,256,000 (as of 2022). The official language is Spanish. Cuba, a communist country, has close ties with North Korea and is even called a "brother country." Diplomatic relations were established in 1960.
Cuba boycotted the 1988 Seoul Olympics to show solidarity with North Korea. When Chairman Castro passed away in 2016, Kim Jung Eun, the head of the
Last September, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at the Cuban Embassy in Washington, and the North Korean Foreign Ministry said the following month that the attack was motivated by the US's vile anti-Cuban intentions.
On January 1st of this year, Kim sent a congratulatory telegram to President Diaz-Canel on the 65th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution.
"I am confident that the traditional friendly and cooperative relationship between our two countries, which is bound together by the common struggle for the victory of socialism, will continue to be strengthened and developed in the future," he said.
Meanwhile, South Korea severed diplomatic relations with Cuba following the Cuban Revolution in 1995, and all exchanges with Cuba ceased.
In 2016, then-Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se visited Cuba and expressed his willingness to establish diplomatic ties. In addition, the South Korean government sent 300,000 people to Cuba, which suffered major damage from torrential rains in June last year.
South Korea announced that it would provide humanitarian aid worth $100 million to Cuba, indicating its intention to improve relations with Cuba. In February of this year, South Korea established diplomatic relations with Cuba. For South Korea, Cuba is a major Latin American country.
As mentioned above, Cuba has close ties with North Korea, so preparations for establishing diplomatic relations have been carried out behind the scenes to avoid interference from North Korea.
North Korea appears to have been shocked by Cuba's sudden establishment of diplomatic relations with South Korea, but has not openly criticized it to this day. However, in March of this year, North Korean media reported,
It was reported that the North Korean ambassador to Cuba visited the Cuban president to offer his farewell address. South Korean media pointed out that this move may have been influenced by the establishment of diplomatic ties between South Korea and Cuba.
In May, North Korea's Korean Central News Agency and other media introduced countries that sent messages on the birthday of the late Kim Il Sung, but did not mention Cuba.
At the time, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported the incident, stating, "Some are saying this is an expression of dissatisfaction over the establishment of diplomatic ties between South Korea and Cuba in February of this year."
In the midst of this, South Korea announced in April that it had reached an agreement with Cuba to establish permanent diplomatic missions in each country.
On the 23rd, South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Jeong Byung-won met with Cuban Foreign Ministry Director General for Bilateral Relations Pereira. This was the first high-level talks between the two countries since the establishment of diplomatic ties.
The two leaders reportedly discussed bilateral relations, the mutual establishment of permanent diplomatic missions abroad, and cooperation in the international community. Jeong will serve as the Korean Ambassador to Cuba, who will be appointed in Havana, the capital of Cuba.
The North Korean government has recently escalated its provocative actions, including sending a large number of balloons with garbage hanging from them into South Korea.
The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported in the Korean newspaper JoongAng Ilbo that the two countries will discuss "relationships between the two countries, opening of diplomatic missions overseas, mutual cooperation,
The article explained that the two sides discussed the regional situation and cooperation on the international stage. The article continued, "Although the topic was merely 'regional situation,' the Korean Peninsula issue was in fact discussed comprehensively.
"However, the specific reaction of the Cuban side to this Hot Topic was not disclosed," he added.
South Korea and Cuba are deepening their relationship. According to Financial News, Ewha Women's University
Professor Park Won-gon of the Department of North Korean Studies at the University of Tokyo told the media, "North Korea has not made any particular mention of the establishment of diplomatic ties between South Korea and Cuba, but the deepening of its diplomatic isolation is a diplomatic blunder."
"I'm sure he's worried about losing," he speculated.