Postcards from the (Diplomatic) Edge

James Trottier outside the Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum in Pyongyang. Photo: Kevin Jo

Canada has had diplomatic relations with North Korea since 2001, managed through the Canadian Embassy in South Korea. While directing the political/economic program in Seoul, I was cross-accredited as the Political Counsellor to North Korea. I led four Canadian diplomatic missions to…

Impressions of a Short Visit to North Korea

Impressions of a Short Visit to North Korea

As a veteran of the Cold War and the realities of the division of the two Germanies, the parallel with the Korean situation has not gone unremarked. Unlike the German Democratic Republic, however, to which I was accredited from 1984-86, I have…

Letters // Correspondance

Letters // Correspondance

We much enjoyed Hugh Stephens’ account of his 1991 trip to Pyongyang, North Korea (bout de papier, Vol. 9 No. 4) and congratulate him on it. Particularly interesting were his observations about Kaesong and the truce village of Panmunjon. As he says,…