Whenever North Korea and the U.S. need to engage diplomatically, or when Scandinavian tourists are experiencing mishaps, the Swedish embassy in North Korea plays a critical role.
The embassy is, however, staffed by just two diplomats and, as a recent interview one of them conducted with Swedish national radio reveals, their interactions with locals are limited and daily lives are ridden with inconveniences, frustrations and loneliness.
And even if a diplomat is passionate about helping North Koreans, and about bridging his culture and theirs, bureaucratic obstacles and mistrust consistently stand in the way.[/p
Whenever North Korea and the U.S. need to engage diplomatically, or when Scandinavian tourists are experiencing mishaps, the Swedish embassy in North Korea plays a critical role.
The embassy is, however, staffed by just two diplomats and, as a recent interview one of them conducted with Swedish national radio reveals, their interactions with locals are limited and daily lives are ridden with inconveniences, frustrations and loneliness.
Jojje Olsson is a Swedish writer who took his journalism degree at the University of Hong Kong and has been living in China since 2007. He currently works as a correspondent for Swedish magazine Fokus based in Taipei, and have published three books about China.