Tag: Kim Jong-un

Tweet of the Day: Kim Jong-un Getting Fatter?

| April 13, 2019

Secretary of State Pompeo Says that Kim Jong-un is a Tyrant

| April 11, 2019

It is pretty clear to anyone objectively viewing this that the Trump administration is playing good cop, bad cop with Kim Jong-un:

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday acknowledged that he saw North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as a “tyrant,” potentially throwing cold water on dialogue with a regime that considers its supreme leader unassailable. 

Speaking to the Senate Appropriation Committee, Pompeo’s comments came as an affirmative answer to a senator’s question on whether he considers Kim a “tyrant” in the likes of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. 

“Sure. I’m sure I’ve said that,” Pompeo replied. 

The secretary’s words were in stark contrast to U.S. President Donald Trump’s own last year when he said he “fell in love” with Kim and the praise he has lavished on the North Korean leader since. Even after his second summit with Kim in Vietnam fell apart in February, the president has maintained they continue to share a “very good” relationship. 

In spite of the failed summit, Pyongyang has held back from criticizing Trump directly, saying that aides like Pompeo and national security adviser John Bolton persuaded Trump to walk out. The North has since expressed interest in a third summit with Trump to work things out, an idea which was reciprocated by both Pompeo and Bolton on different occasions. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but President Trump is likely being nice to Kim Jong-un so he won’t get blamed for when negotiations ultimately fail. He is leaving the tough talk and negotiations up to Pompeo and Bolton.

Picture of the Day: Kim Jong-un Attends Military Meeting

| March 29, 2019
N.K. leader attends military meeting
N.K. leader attends military meetingNorth Korea’s top leader Kim Jong-un (front, L) attends a military meeting in Pyongyang on March 25-26, 2019, in this image from the North’s Korean Central TV broadcast on March 27. It was Kim’s first reported public appearance since March 10 when he voted in the parliamentary election. Kim gave opening and closing speeches at the meeting. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

Tweet of the Day: Time for Moon to Use the Hotline?

| March 19, 2019

Tweet of the Day: Supreme Representative of All Korean People?

| March 16, 2019

Picture of the Day: Kim Jong-un Casts a Vote

| March 13, 2019
North Korea holds parliamentary elections
North Korea holds parliamentary electionsNorth Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un casts his vote in the election of deputies to the 14th Supreme People’s Assembly at a polling station set up at Kim Chaek University of Technology on March 10, 2019, in this photo from the North’s Korean Central News Agency on March 12. Kim voted for the president of the university, Hong So-hon, who was a candidate, the news report said. The country holds parliamentary elections every five years. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

Picture of the Day: Trump Kim Summit Documentary

| March 9, 2019
N.K. TV airs documentary on Kim-Trump summit
N.K. TV airs documentary on Kim-Trump summitNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un (R, front) shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump as they bid farewell after their summit talks in Hanoi in this photo captured from a documentary aired by the North’s Korean Central TV on March 6, 2019. The broadcaster ran a 75-minute feature on the summit in the Vietnamese capital, held Feb. 27-28, that ended without any agreement. The documentary, however, said Kim reiterated his will for them to continue to meet more often to improve bilateral relations. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

Picture of the Day: Kim Jong-un Returns to Pyongyang

| March 7, 2019
N.K. leader returns home
N.K. leader returns homeNews and photos of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un returning to Pyongyang from a Vietnam trip are carried in the March 5, 2019, edition of the country’s daily Rodong Sinmun. The paper was distributed just hours after Kim arrived at Pyongyang Railway Station at 3 a.m. Kim met with U.S. President Donald Trump in Hanoi last week, but the two leaders did not sign an agreement that they had been expected to approve. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

Picture of the Day: Kim Jong-un Pays Tribute to Ho Chi Minh

| March 4, 2019
Kim pays tribute at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum
Kim pays tribute at the Ho Chi Minh MausoleumNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, in Hanoi, to pay tribute on March 2, 2019, before heading to the Vietnamese border town of Dong Dang from where he is expected to cross into China by train on his way back to his country. (Yonhap)

Picture of the Day: The Odd Couple?

| February 28, 2019
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump dine together at a Hanoi hotel in this photo captured from the footage aired by Yonhap News TV. (Yonhap)