Kuala lumpur: North Korea is anticipated to skip the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Malaysia this week, marking its first absence from the multilateral gathering since it joined in 2000.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the ARF is a significant platform attended by major powers such as the United States, China, Japan, and Russia, and is the only multilateral meeting North Korea regularly participates in. Since joining, North Korea has consistently sent top diplomats or ambassadors to the event. This forum has served as a unique diplomatic avenue for North Korean officials to engage directly with counterparts from South Korea, the U.S., and Japan.
South Korea has utilized the ARF to gain support for peace and denuclearization initiatives on the Korean Peninsula, while North Korea has used the platform to challenge these efforts through its relationships with China and Russia. As of Thursday, no confirmation of North Korea's participation in the ARF had been made public. A diplomatic source suggested North Korea's absence is likely linked to ASEAN's practices, especially given the strained relations between Malaysia and North Korea.
In 2021, Malaysia cut diplomatic ties with North Korea following tensions that erupted when Malaysia extradited a North Korean businessman to the U.S. on money laundering charges. ASEAN typically avoids inviting countries without diplomatic relations or those with severed ties with any member states, even if they are forum members.
Relations between North Korea and Malaysia have been tense since the 2017 assassination of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. Notably, the 2000 ARF in Bangkok hosted a landmark meeting between then North Korean Foreign Minister Paek Nam-sun and then U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. After the collapse of nuclear talks with the U.S. in 2019, North Korea has been represented at the ARF by its ambassador based in the ASEAN region.