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Malaysia shuts embassy in North Korea as Pyongyang cuts diplomatic ties over US extradition of its citizen
- North Korean Mun Chol-myong had lived in Malaysia for a decade and was arrested in May 2019 after US authorities requested his extradition
- He denied that he had laundered funds through front companies and that he issued fraudulent documents to support illicit shipments to his country
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Malaysia’s foreign ministry on Friday denounced a decision by North Korea to sever diplomatic ties, describing the move as “unfriendly and unconstructive”.
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In a statement, the ministry said Malaysia would close its embassy in Pyongyang in response and order all diplomatic staff and their dependents at the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur to leave the country within 48 hours.
North Korea earlier announced it would sever diplomatic relations with Malaysia after a court there ruled that a North Korean man could be extradited to the United States to face money-laundering charges, state media KCNA reported on Friday.
North Korea’s Foreign Ministry called the charges an “absurd fabrication and sheer plot” orchestrated by the US, “the principal enemy of our state” where the man was eventually extradited.
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It said it was announcing “total severance of diplomatic relations with Malaysia, which committed a super-large hostile act against [North Korea] in subservience to US pressure”. The ministry also said the US would “pay a due price”.
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