Telegram from Norwegian Embassy in Washington, DC to Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 'Expulsion of North Korean Diplomats from Scandinavia'

ROYAL NORWEGIAN EMBASSY

WASHINGTON D.C.

22 October 1976

No. 821

Attachments

ROYAL MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

EXPULSION OF NORTH KOREAN DIPLOMATS FROM SCANDINAVIA

The news of the North Korean diplomats who has been asked to leave Scandinavia has been reported in American newspapers as well as on radio and TV. The issue was featured on the front page of the Washington Post dated 22 October^* with a report from the newspaper’s Tokyo correspondent.

In addition to accounts of the events, the Post writes that Scandinavian countries have normally sympathized more with North Korea than with its bitter rival in the south, but much of this goodwill has now suffered from the revelations of the illegal smuggling.

The article also refers to North Korea’s failure to pay foreign entities, and views the illegal distribution of cigarettes, spirits and narcotics in light of these failures. According to the article, Japanese trading companies are pessimistic in their view of North Korea’s economic future as they are seeing a collapse in industrial management. One example mentioned in the article is a Finnish paper mill purchased two years ago, which is now rusting outdoors as a factory building was never constructed.

Attached is the Washington Post article.

Power of attorney:

Sverre Stub

Embassy Secretary

^*Translator's Note: The Washington Post article is titled "N. Korean Smuggling Tied to Debt."