North Korea has closed its diplomatic mission in Angola shortly after doing the same for its mission in Uganda.

The North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) said on Monday that the North’s ambassador to Angola conveyed the decision for the withdrawal and leader Kim Jong-un’s cordial greetings to Angolan President João Lourenço last Friday.

According to the KCNA report, Lourenço expressed hope that Pyongyang will achieve significant headway in its economic development, while also conveying his country’s intent to strengthen friendly relations with the North in the future.

Since establishing diplomatic ties with Angola in 1975, North Korea had withdrawn its permanent diplomatic mission in 1998 before reopening it in 2013.

The decision to close the mission in Angola is believed to be based on the disruptions to the regime’s projects on the continent due to tightened sanctions by the international community.

Despite the sanctions, the North was previously suspected of providing military supplies to Angola and sending workers to construction sites in the African country in a bid to earn foreign currency.

[Photo : YONHAP News]