On Monday (19), Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel was elected first secretary of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party, becoming the new top leader of the Communist Party of Cuba, while North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent three congratulatory telegrams in a rare week. Foreign analysts say this is a clear manifestation of his attempt to unite other countries with communist ideology and break the U.S.-led international blockade.
According to KCNA, Kim Jong Un congratulated Diaz-Canel on his birthday in the latest message and expressed solidarity with his “difficult brother” Cuba, which is also under U.S. sanctions. Kim Jong Un also reportedly sent a large flower basket to the new Communist Party leader through the North Korean ambassador to Cuba.
Before that, Kim Jong Un had sent two congratulatory messages on the election of Diaz-Canel.
It is very rare for Kim Jong Un to send multiple congratulatory letters to a foreign leader within a week. It appears to be a way for Pyongyang to try to maintain closer ties with its own socialist ally amid the stalemate in its nuclear talks with Washington.
North Korea has been strengthening its ties with the communist ideological state in recent months.
Miguel Diaz-Canel, the newly elected first secretary of the Cuban Communist Party’s Central Committee. (Hector Vivas/Getty Images)
In March, Kim Jong Un sent a message to Communist Party leader Xi Jinping calling for “unity and cooperation,” and Xi described the relationship between Beijing and Pyongyang as “a valuable asset.
Also in March, Kim Jong Un sent several verbal messages to the leaders of Vietnam, Laos and Cuba, urging stronger ties with the expanding socialist countries.
These moves by the North Korean regime stand in stark contrast to its further isolation from South Korea, the United States and other democracies in the international community. After launching a short-range ballistic missile on March 25, North Korea announced it would not participate in the Tokyo Summer Olympics, while remaining silent on its relations with the U.S. and South Korea.
“The recent move is seen as a strategy by Kim Jong-un to secure his diplomatic outlet before the U.S. Biden administration announces the results of its review of North Korea’s policy.” Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies in South Korea, said, “The U.S. policy review of North Korea is expected to play a decisive and crucial role in Pyongyang’s next move, as the North now appears to be focusing on resolving internal affairs and managing existing relations The DPRK now seems to be concentrating on resolving its internal affairs and managing its existing relations.”
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