Italy expels North Korea's envoy over nuclear, missile tests

Rome [Italy], Oct.1 (ANI): Italy Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano has announced that North Korea's new Ambassador to Rome Mun Jong-nam has been asked to leave the country in a protest over Kim Jong-Un's recent Ballistic missile launches and nuclear tests.

"We have taken the firm decision to interrupt the accreditation procedure. The North Korean ambassador will have to leave the country. We want to make Pyongyang understand that isolation is inevitable if it does not change course," Italian local media quoted Alfano as saying.

Alfano said that Italy would not be severing its diplomatic ties with North Korea, saying "It can always be useful to maintain a channel of communication."

The position of North Korean envoy in Rome was lying vacant for over a year and in July Pyongyang nominated long-serving Foreign Ministry official Mun Jong-nam as its new ambassador to Italy. Mun Jong-nam had started working in Rome but has not completed his registration with Italian authorities.

North Korea is being condemned by international community over September 3rd nuclear test and numerous ballistic missile test carried out in 2017 .The Trump administration said that it was in direct communication with the government of North Korea over its missile and nuclear tests to find a diplomatic solution to the nuclear crisis..

"We ask, 'Would you like to talk?' We have lines of communications to Pyongyang - we're not in a dark situation, a blackout," Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson said.

"We have a couple, three channels open to Pyongyang," he added.(ANI)

This story has not been edited. It has been published as provided by ANI