Christian Taaks, the Korea office head of a German foundation that organizes capacity-building projects in North Korea, died on Saturday at the age of 61.

The Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF) said Taaks died after a severe illness.

Taaks led FNF’s Seoul office since 2018 and was a regular participant in local events about the DPRK, frequently commenting on North Korea issues to both South Korean and international media. He also led multiple delegations to North Korea, according to the foundation.

But like other nonprofit organizations, FNF was forced to suspend its work inside the country following the outbreak of COVID-19