Senior diplomats from South Korea and Cuba took a significant step in the bilateral relationsafter a meeting held this Wednesday in Seoul.
The meeting marks the first time that both countries talk since they reestablished diplomatic relations in early 2024.
South Korean Deputy Vice Foreign Minister Chung Byung-wonreceived in Seoul Carlos Miguel Pereira Hernandezgeneral director of Bilateral Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba.
During the meeting, they discussed the opening of diplomatic missions in their respective countries, which they consider a “significant milestone.”
They agreed to establish embassies as soon as possiblenoting that these will serve as a basis to strengthen ties between nations.
Chung announced that South Korea plans to open a provisional office in Havana during the first half of the year. A group of South Korean officials will visit the Cuban capital this week.
Pereira explained that Cuban officials are already working to inaugurate the Cuban embassy in South Korea. The diplomatic headquarters could be open in July.
The Cuban director general of Bilateral Affairs is in Seoul leading a delegation that participates in the regional forum on cooperation between South Korea and Latin American and Caribbean countries.
This participation is historic. Pereira is the first high-ranking diplomat on the island to visit Seoul since diplomatic relations were officially restored in February, after more than six decades of rupture.
In 2018, Miguel Díaz-Canel visited North Korea and held talks with the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, which adds an interesting context to this new stage of diplomatic relations with South Korea.
The local press has highlighted the importance of these developments, highlighting that Cuba has been a traditional ally of North Korea since 1960.
This new diplomatic relationship with South Korea is expected to have a significant impact on the region and on the international relations of both countries.
