BERLIN/ PYONGYANG (Own report) - Following yesterday's summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korea's Head of State Kim Jong Un, German politicians are calling on Berlin and the EU to participate in a "process of multilateral dialogue" in Northeast Asia. Berlin should launch a "German-French initiative" to intervene in the upcoming negotiations with Pyongyang, declared Hartmut Koschyk (CSU), who, has been engaged in talks in South and North Korea, for a long time. South Korea's President Moon Jae-in would be quite receptive to intensifying German-European activities on the Korean Peninsula. German business representatives are hoping for profitable deals, particularly because of the recent developments in North Korea. Having acquired the capacity of nuclear deterrence, the North Korean leadership is planning to focus the country's resources on its economic development. Since 2013, Pyongyang has established 22 special economic zones. The German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) is demanding that Berlin promote business with North Korea through the German Development Bank (KfW) and with Hermes export credit guarantees. Read more

PYONGYANG/BERLIN (Own report) - Taking advantage of North Korea's strategic reorientation, Germany's FDP-affiliated Friedrich Naumann Foundation is resuming its activities in that country. Recently, the North Korean leadership officially ended its policy of a balanced build up of its military and the economy, to prioritize the country's economy, a move, experts note, President Kim Jong Un had been seeking to make for years. However, he initially prioritized the development of the nuclear deterrence capability, to safeguard against a possible US attack. He is now seeking to have UN sanctions lifted, to allow foreign companies into the country. Important steps have already been made. Possibly the Naumann Foundation - which had established contacts to Pyongyang already in 2002 and in 2004 organized a workshop on the country's "economic modernization" - also played a role. Its activities should now intensify. German companies, according to reports, are "lying in wait". Read more