A delegation of officials from North Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) departed Pyongyang on Sunday for several Southeast Asian countries, the country’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

The delegation, led by vice foreign minister Ri Kil Song, will visit, among others, Malaysia, Cambodia and Laos, KCNA reported.

State media did not go into further detail about the diplomats’ itinerary during the trip or other countries they may see during their visit, which is one of the first by a delegation from the DPRK’s MFA to Southeast Asia this year.

Encouraging Southeast Asian nations to cut long-standing ties