A high-profile North Korean diplomat stationed in Cuba has defected to the South, Seoul’s spy agency has confirmed to the BBC.
The political counselor is believed to be the highest-ranking North Korean diplomat to escape to South Korea since 2016.
The diplomat defected in November, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) said.
Details about defections of North Koreans often take months to come to light as the defectors must take courses on South Korean society before they are formally integrated.
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His work reportedly involved stopping Havana from forging official diplomatic ties with Seoul. However, in February, the two governments did establish official relations, in what was seen as a setback for Pyongyang.
“Every North Korean thinks at least once about living in South Korea,” the newspaper quoted him as saying.
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This is the best summary I could come up with:
A high-profile North Korean diplomat stationed in Cuba has defected to the South, Seoul’s spy agency has confirmed to the BBC.The political counselor is believed to be the highest-ranking North Korean diplomat to escape to South Korea since 2016.The diplomat defected in November, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) said.Details about defections of North Koreans often take months to come to light as the defectors must take courses on South Korean society before they are formally integrated.
The NIS has not confirmed this to the BBC.The Chosun Ilbo newspaper said it was able to interview the diplomat, whom it identified as 52-year-old Ri Il Kyu.It added that he defected because of “disillusionment with the North Korean regime and a bleak future”.His work reportedly involved stopping Havana from forging official diplomatic ties with Seoul.
However, in February, the two governments did establish official relations, in what was seen as a setback for Pyongyang.
“Every North Korean thinks at least once about living in South Korea,” the newspaper quoted him as saying.The last known high-profile defection to the South was that of Tae Yong-ho in 2016.
He is North Korea’s former deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom.On Sunday, South Korea marked its very first North Korean Defectors’ Day ceremony.Addressing the ceremony, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol promised better financial support for North Korean defectors and tax incentives for companies hiring them.Mr Yoon, a conservative, has taken a more hawkish approach towards North Korea and on foreign policy general, compared to his predecessor Moon Jae-In.He supports sanctions against Kim Jong Un’s regime and has promised to develop technology to carry out a pre-emptive strike on North Korea if Pyongyang looks to attack Seoul.The latest defection comes at a time of heightened tensions between the two Koreas.North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has formally abandoned the goal of reunification with with the South and also recently branded Seoul as “Enemy number One” - a dramatic turnaround from just six years ago when he formally met then South Korean Leader Moon Jae In.Since then, there has been an upping of rhetoric on both sides of the border.
The two countries floated propaganda balloons along their border towns, with those from the North containing trash and parasites.And earlier in June, Pyongyang claimed to have test-fired an advanced nuclear warhead missile.
The original article contains 405 words, the summary contains 384 words. Saved 5%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
Wow. Thanks for saving us 5%
as the defectors must take courses on South Korean society before they are formally integrated
Would love to see what these courses entail
A shitload of kpop on repeat
I think I’ll go back.
These are good news for him
His parents had already past away so he felt ok to defect as they wouldn’t face retribution in North Korea
Guys. Maybe it’s not the Best Korea.
At least we still have best Russia, which is… the best Russia we’ll ever have.
Can I return it for a different Russia?
You can have Kaliningrad, or as it’s sometimes called, Eastp Russia
Russia at home
Russia in the 90s was better.
That cannot possibly be correct? We just need some .mls to come tell us why we are wrong.
Happy to oblige.
Basically the North is a totalitarian state in which one family has retained absolute control of the state and it’s population. They have prioritised military programmes and their nuclear ambitions above the needs of their people and thus they have one of the worst economies and their people are often starving and diseased.
Recently they have also been arming Russia to help with their war of aggression against the innocent people of Ukraine.
All of this is in contrast to South Korea which is a democratic country with one of the world’s strongest economies which provides for a very good standard of living for its population.
There is much more, I’m sure, but these are the first things that pop to mind and the reason why the North is not the best Korea, and infact the South should he considered the Best Korea.
This poor brave man. I hope he doesn’t find himself accidentally falling out of a window now that Putin and Kim are besties now.
How do most defectors fare once the integration process is complete? Does Seoul help with post defection career placement?
North Korean defectors receive significant governmental support in South Korea, albeit some might argue it’s inadequate. The majority successfully integrate, securing job and attaining a moderate standard of living, although quite significant wage gap exists between defectors and South Korean-born citizens (approximately $500 avg. as of 2019). According to 2019 survey, 74.2% of defectors are satisfied with their lives in South Korea.
Still, some defectors struggle with adaptation, unfortunately leading to criminal behavior or, in extreme cases, suicide.
Obviously, those from privileged backgrounds in NK tend to adapt more easily. They often arrive with significant funds (with questionable source) and make a deal with the SK gov. to not ask about its origin in exchange for NK’s internal intel, which this guy obviously will have a lot.
I’m pretty sure like 80% of North Korean defectors start in China. Obviously, a top diplomat with resources wouldn’t necessarily do that since China wants to keep up appearances (even if they sort of hate North Korea). But “most” “defectors” fare about as well as “illegal immigrants” in the U.S. or Europe.
As cynical as it may be, it’s in South Korea’s, China’s, and North Korea’s interest to ignore most of it. If it gets media attention, maybe South Korea or a Western country accepts them as asylum seekers. A few times, people got into western embassies in Beijing and it was global news. China was not happy. But most people who leave North Korea end up working in a Beijing noodle shop or whatever.
And South Korea, while often proclaiming to want reunification, doesn’t actually want the headaches. It’s probably be 1,000 times more complex than Germany and East Germany reuniting.
Some integrate better than others most certainly. Younger defectors might go to Korean universities. Older ones might go work in factories or wherever they’re a good fit. Some want to go back to North Korea because they can’t handle the cultural differences.
This guy is higher-profile than most, so he’s prolly gonna live pretty kushily.
Can they go back? Wouldn’t they risk imprisonment or execution?
Have a Riker, Kim.
