N. Korea declines IMF, World Bank invitation

North Korea will not participate in the upcoming International Monetary Fund and International Bank for Reconstruction and Development annual general meeting Sept. 26 in Prague.

"North Korean Ambassador to the U.N. Li Hyung-Chol sent a message, 'We cannot attend due to not having sufficient time to prepare,' to the Collaborative Preparatory Joint Bureau for the annual general meeting," the Ministry of Finance and Economy's Director of International Finance Bureau Kim Yong-Duk said Sept. 19. "However, the North expressed they have great interest in the IMF and the IBRD."

For the IMF and IBRD annual general meeting, the IMF had sent a special invitation Sept. 1 to the non-member nations, North Korea and East Timor, to attend as special guests.