Opinion - The Korea Times

Enjoying the life of privilege

By Andrei LankovAs reported by the international media, Kim Jong-chul, the older brother of North Korean ruler Kim Jong-un, has been spotted once again at an Eric Clapton concert, this time in London.This is not the first time that Kim Jong-chul has been spotted overseas. His addiction to modern music, essentially a product made by and for the scions of the affluent middle class in the rich world, has been known for some time. The same is applicable to his younger brother’s love of basketball, and perhaps some other Western sports.All of this reminds us that the current generation of North Korea’s top elite are very different in their outlook and lifestyle from their grandfathers and fathers.North Korea is basically a quasi-feudal state. This is not necessarily a term of abuse, but rather, a matter of fact statement.For the last 60-odd years, the country has been run by a small group of elite families, numbering two or three hundred at most. These families dominate the high level posts in the government, party and military, inter-marry and enjoy a comfortable and secluded

May 31, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

One giant leap for proliferation

By Andrei Lankov So, it has happened: the KCNA reported that the North Korean navy has successfully tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM). The launch took place in the vicinity of the Sinpo Naval base, located on North Korea’s Eastern coast, and the Supreme Leader honoured the event with his august presence.This is not as surprising as it might appear. For the last few months, there have been a number of leaks about North Korean advances in SLBM technology. U.S. signal intelligence had already discovered a few SLBM test launches, even though these earlier tests did not use actual submarines.Strictly speaking, the North Korean media somewhat exaggerated their accomplishment: the North Korean engineers did not test a missile, they rather tested their ``SLBM ejection system.” Submarine missiles are first ejected from a submersed submarine by the use of high-pressure gas. Only once the missile successfully makes it through the water into the air are the main rocket engines ignited. Thus, the current test has not demonstrated that North Korean missiles can

May 17, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

To live and die in Paris

By Andrei LankovParis, the “city of light,” is a major hotspot for the rich and famous, ambitious and talented, and has been for centuries. It seems that even the members of North Korea’s ruling dynasty ― the ostensibly communist/national Kim family – have not been able to resist the temptations of this great city.Indeed, many members of the Kim family have spent a significant part of their lives outside of their country, or are indeed living outside of the country right now. Paris was frequently one of the major places to which they have gravitated when on sojourn overseas.It is not known whether the current chief Kim has ever visited Paris. But given the fact that he spent some years at school in Switzerland, it seems likely that he visited the French capital at least once. This looks all the more plausible when we take into account that some evidence that has recently come to light suggests that Kim Jong-un is rather fond of overseas travel. For example, it is now known that he visited India in 2007.We should also remember that Kim’s mother, the beaut

May 3, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

North Korea is no Iran

By Andrei Lankov People are once again talking about nuclear weapons, and we all know why: the Iranian deal. Right now, there is much talk about whether the Iranian deal will become a prototype for a similar deal between the United States and North Korea.While such talk is welcome, it seems that it is very unlikely to lead anywhere. North Korea is no Iran, the situation in the two countries is quite different.The Iranian government hopes to see international sanctions lifted ― on the assumption that it will lead to a significant improvement in the Iranian economy and an improvement in the living standards of the general population. Maybe Iranian decision makers would prefer to develop nuclear weapons as soon as possible. However, when faced with a choice between nuclear weapons and better living standards for the majority, they choose the latter.In their situation, such a choice seems to make sense. Iran is much criticized, even vilified by the Western media. But it is not an out and out dictatorship. It is probably better described as a quasi-democratic theocracy in which parti

Apr 19, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

Why defectors head south

By Andrei LankovIn January this year, the South Korean Ministry of Unification released statistics for the number of refugees who had arrived from the North in the past year. As was widely expected, the figure was slightly down in 2014: there were 1,514 arrivals in 2013, while 1,396 came last year.At any rate, 27,518 North Koreans have arrived in the South since the armistice that ended the Korean War in 1953. It is worth remembering that the vast majority of these people came to the South quite recently, mainly after 2000.The North Korean community in South Korea is, in many regards, very dissimilar to other emigre communities that existed in the Cold War era.To start with, most of the refugees are women ― 70 percent of the total number and 78 percent of the 2014 arrivals, are female. This reflects the mechanics of escape: it is much easier for a woman slip through the surveillance networks in the North, and it is easier for a woman to find ways to survive in China ― which is a major conduit for refugees on their way to the South.Another peculiarity of this community is the relative

Apr 5, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

Starts rise and fall in N. Korea

By Andrei LankovThe three years of Kim Jong-un’s reign in North Korea have been marked by a number of unusual features and strange moves.One can mention, for instance, the great attention paid to building the Masikryeong Ski Resort and other leisure facilities in a country where getting one’s daily rice is a major problem for the vast majority of the population. The rather bizarre visits of Denis Rodman to the country are also worthy of mention, as is the short-lived endorsement of popular Americana by Moranbong band.One of the penchants of the current Kim regime is promoting and demoting high-ranking military commanders. In March, North Korea watchers noticed that Pak Jong-chon, deputy chairman of North Korea’s General Staff, began to appear in public sporting the one-star epaulets of a “major general.”  The same man had two stars of a “lieutenant general” back in 2013, and in 2014, for a brief time, he was a three-star “colonel general.” So within the space of two years, Pak was first promoted and then lost two ranks, all w

Mar 22, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

Being thirsty in N. Korea

By Andrei LankovNorth Koreans drink, like humans do. No, I am not talking about intoxicating liquids here, though the addiction to booze might be as old as humankind itself. Rather, I am talking about drinks that we drink to quench our thirst.Few would argue that the most innocuous of these drinks is water. This might well be the case, but many cultures across the globe have shown a level of aversion to this simple, healthy, but essentially tasteless liquid. In fact, Koreans, both north and south, seem to be more inclined to drink water than many other peoples do worldwide.Water might sometimes be hard to come by in North Korea. It seems that the vast majority of rural households, as well as a significant part of urban households, have no access to tap water. In the past, one had to go to a village well in order to get something to drink. Nowadays, a public water pump has assumed the same role. Even in less prosperous towns and villages across the country, there is one such pump for a dozen or so houses. This is where people go to get water; it is also a place for doing laundry and e

Mar 8, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

The sorry tale of the divided families

By Andrei LankovAccording to official statistics produced by the Ministry of Unification, as of June 30, there were 129,553 South Koreans registered as members of divided families. This is an official status and it means that the registered person is eligible to apply for a family reunion with their relatives in the North. Such reunions are not easy to arrange, for most people the chances of actually meeting their family members is slim.The divided family issue emerged in the late 1940s. In August 1945, the Korean Peninsula was divided along the 38th parallel into future zones of Soviet and American occupation. It took some 20 minutes of deliberation, a pencil, ruler and map from National Geographic Magazine to draw the line, which, admittedly, no one saw as being permanent at the time.The demarcation line cut Korea into two, with little reference made to geographical and historical knowledge. Thus, many Koreans woke up one morning to find out that a departed family member had just crossed a new border that had not existed just the day before. Traffic across the line was soon banned,

Feb 22, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

The gamble of the young marshal

By Andrei LankovNews coming from North Korea seems to indicate that Kim Jong-un is seriously contemplating market-oriented reforms in North Korea ― doing something that his late father was dead against.The last two years have been marked by a number of political decisions pointing in the same direction. In agriculture, farmers are now allowed to work in household-based teams and keep 30 percent of their harvest, and in industry, central planning is to be partially abolished. Private entrepreneurs, far more successful and numerous in North Korea than most people imagine, are not harassed by the state anymore. In general, all this, and other policies are similar with what the Chinese government did in the late 1970s in the early days of Deng Xiaoping.It has been argued that Kim Jong-un, being a graduate of an elite Swiss school, must have a natural inclination to reform his country ― unlike his father who spoke no foreign languages and travelled very little. However, this logic is not as persuasive as it might appear: policies are determined by real interests, not by personal incl

Feb 8, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

Misperception of Russia

By Andrei LankovIf the international media is to be believed, there has been a dramatic revival in relations between Moscow and Pyongyang in the last year. One can often come across claims that Russia is going to replace Beijing as North Korea’s major sponsor. Such statements are repeated frequently, thus many are beginning to take them more seriously than they deserve to be.Indeed, the last year has been marked by a level of political exchanges that the two countries have not seen since the late 1980s, and there is even talk of Russian President Vladimir Putin becoming the first foreign leader to meet Kim Jong-un. The recent shipment of Russian coal via the North Korean port city of Rason, where a joint Russian-North Korean company rents a renovated pier, attracted much attention. The Russian construction company Mostovikis is about to begin a mammoth renovation of North Korea’s railway system ― getting paid in the form of mining rights for undeveloped deposits of non-ferrous metals and rare earth.It is easy to see the political rationale behind this ostensible rapproche

Jan 11, 2015By Andrei Lankov

Andrei Lankov

Read more

Enjoying the life of privilege

One giant leap for proliferation

To live and die in Paris

North Korea is no Iran

Why defectors head south

Starts rise and fall in N. Korea

Being thirsty in N. Korea

The sorry tale of the divided families

The gamble of the young marshal

Misperception of Russia

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