Hungarian Embassy in Nigeria, Telegram, 9 February 1972. Subject: DPRK-Nigerian relations

The ambassador of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to Guinea recently visited Nigeria. The purpose of his visit was to investigate whether it would be possible to establish official relations between Nigeria and the DPRK. The ambassador paid no visits to the fraternal ambassadors; he cooperated solely with the ambassador of the People’s Republic of China, and used the latter’s car. On the fifth day of his visit in Lagos, he unexpectedly visited the comrade Soviet ambassador, and asked him to help him in arranging an official visit to the FM [Foreign Ministry] of this country. [The Nigerians] informed the comrade Soviet ambassador that the Chinese ambassador had already made such a request to the FM, and they told him that they could not meet the ambassador of the DPRK. Finally the comrade Soviet ambassador managed to arrange that the ambassador be unofficially received by the head of the Main Department of Asian Countries. Following his visit in the FM, the DPRK ambassador departed from Nigeria without paying a visit to the Soviet ambassador; he merely sent his interpreter to inform the comrade Soviet ambassador.

During the unofficial conversation in the FM, the head of the Main Department of Asian Countries stated that for the time being, it was out of question to recognize the DPRK.

According to the interpreter, the conversation was of a very formal and reserved nature.

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