oreign Minister Sugiono is set to visit North Korea for a bilateral meeting with his counterpart over the weekend, marking the first visit from a high-ranking Indonesian official to the country in 12 years.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Yvonne Mewengkang confirmed Sugiono’s visit to North Korea on Thursday, saying that the minister is slated to meet with North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui following an invitation from the latter.
The meeting is slated for Saturday, with both ministers expected to “discuss ways to strengthen bilateral, regional and global cooperation”, she said, as quoted by state news agency Antara.
Yvonne described the visit as part of Jakarta’s commitment to maintain constructive dialogue with regional partners.
Indonesia has not sent a ministerial-level official to Pyongyang for more than a decade, with the last visit taking place in 2013 by then-foreign minister Marty Natalegawa.
At that time, the visit took place amid a nuclear deadlock between North Korea and major powers such as the United States and China as Pyongyang launched a nuclear test that year that prompted tougher sanctions from the United Nations.