I will take the word of a South Korean official over an anonymous defector:
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s aunt, Kim Kyong-hui, is still alive although she is “in a vegetative state,” according to a government official Wednesday.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, rejected growing speculation that Kim, 68, either died by natural causes or was executed by her nephew.
The official, however, said her health has deteriorated after stepping down from all posts in the tyrannical state.
“Kim Jong-un executed Jang Song-thaek, but he is taking care of his aunt and letting her live,” the official said. [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but when it comes to some of these type of accounts around Kim Jong-un from defectors it appears to me they just repeat rumors or exaggerate what they know.
Since this report comes from the South Korea’s National Intelligence Service I give it a little more credence than reports that come from defectors:
Hyon Yong-chol (circled), minister of North Korea’s People’s Armed Forces, appears to have his eyes closed during an event for military officials presided over by Kim Jong-un (center), held on April 24 and 25, in a photo published by the North Korean daily Rodong Sinmun on April 26. South Korea’s spy agency reported Wednesday that Hyon was executed after possibly being accused of having dozed off late last month. [Rodong Sinmun]North Korea executed its defense chief late last month, South Korea’s spy agency reported Wednesday, the latest chapter in leader Kim Jong-un’s reign of terror.
A firing squad executed the defense minister with an antiaircraft gun, the agency said.
Four-star Gen. Hyon Yong-chol, minister of North Korea’s People’s Armed Forces, was executed around April 30 at a military academy in Pyongyang with hundreds of senior military officials watching, said the National Intelligence Service (NIS), citing multiple sources but refusing to disclose them in detail.
The spy agency said Hyon could have been charged with treason but it was likely that he was executed because he showed some sign of disrespect to leader Kim Jong-un rather than plotting a rebellion.
The NIS said Hyon had expressed dissatisfaction with Kim Jong-un’s governing style, without elaborating further. The agency said Hyon dozing off at a military event held on April 24 and 25 in Pyongyang might have sealed his fate.
In a photo published by the state-run daily Rodong Sinmun on April 26, Hyon appeared to have his eyes closed during an event for military officials presided over by Kim Jong-un, who was seated in the center in the front row. Hyon was seated to Kim’s left. [Joong Ang Ilbo]
You can read more at the link, but it is a good thing that the US military doesn’t have this execution policy when people nod off in hours long meetings because we would not have a military.
Here is the latest from the North Korea rumor mill:
Mr. Park shifts uncomfortably in his seat. As one of the most senior North Korean officials to ever defect, he was preparing to tell the ugly truth about the regime he served faithfully for decades.
This is not his real name; he wants his identity hidden for fear of retribution against friends and family still in Pyongyang. It’s not surprising when you hear what he has to say.
His first allegation is shocking. He claims North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered his own aunt, a blood relative, to be poisoned. “On May 5th or 6th of last year,” says Park. “Kim Jong Un ordered his aunt, Kim Kyong Hui to be killed. Only his bodyguard unit, Unit 974, knew this — now senior officials also know she was poisoned.” [CNN]
You can read more at the link, but statements like this from defectors needs to be taken with a healthy dose of skepticism which the media usually doesn’t care about.
I am not surprised by this at all because what appears to be an ejection test does not equal a capable and fielded system:
North Korea did not test fire a ballistic missile from a submarine as Pyongyang claimed over the weekend and the country is still a long way from achieving such a capability, US officials said Monday.
The North’s state media said on Saturday that a new submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) had been tested but US officials rejected the regime’s account.
“That was not a ballistic missile,” a defense official told AFP.
The official played down the test, saying it did not represent a technical breakthrough for the North.
“They are trying to develop that capability,” but there was no “imminent” threat of a submarine-launched missile arsenal coming on line in North Korea, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Pyongyang’s state media said North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un touted the test as an “eye-opening success” that gives his military a “world-level strategic weapon.”
The precise nature of the launch remained unclear. Some analysts suggested the missile might have travelled only a few hundred meters, and that the event did not qualify as a full flight test. [AFP]
You can read more at the link, but I agree with the South Korean estimate that they will not be able to reliably fire a ballistic missile from a submarine for about five more years. Even then I think the accuracy and range will not be all that great but enough to target South Korea and Japan.
Via a reader tip comes news that the North Korean general who masterminded the sinking of the Cheonan that leftists still believe was not executed by North Korea has died:
A powerful North Korean general who Seoul believes was behind the sinking of a South Korean warship and the shelling of one of its islands in 2010 has died, state media said Monday.
Kim Kyok-Sik died on Sunday of respiratory failure while suffering from an unidentified type of cancer, according to Rodong Shinmun, the newspaper of the North’s ruling Workers’ Party. He was 77.
“The comrade served in very important positions… in the military for a long time, making great contributions to firmly protect our socialist motherland,” it said.
The four-star general was named by South Korea as being the operational commander behind the sinking of the Cheonan navy corvette in March 2010 and the shelling eight months later of the border island of Yeonpyeong.
A South Korean-led investigation involving a team of international experts concluded the Cheonan was sunk by a North Korean submarine torpedo and Seoul cut trade and aid links to Pyongyang in response. [AFP]
Kim Jong-un has another member to add to his fan club:
Yes! I’m very excited about North Korea. If I could put all of my money into North Korea, I would. Massive changes are taking place there. I would not have invested in Kim Jong Un’s father or grandfather by any stretch of the imagination, but that’s like saying that in 1980 you shouldn’t invest in China because of Mao Zedong.
Mao was dead and Deng Xiaoping was making huge changes. They are making huge changes in North Korea. The kid is making astonishing changes. [CNN Money]
I am sure that if Jim Rogers wants to put all his money in North Korea, the Kim regime would be more than happy to take it all from him.
Anyway here is another interesting thing that Rogers said that has a grain of truth to it:
When I go to New York I’m so happy that I live in Asia. New York is a third world city, with a third world airport and a third world tax.
Living in Singapore compared to living in New York? Living in Hong Kong compared to Chicago? No I don’t miss it. I’m still an American citizen, an American taxpayer, an American voter, but I’m glad I live here in Asia.
In this March 26, 2015 photo, taken by Google Earth, a 550-meter-long, 15-meter-wide runway for light planes lies parallel to an existing train station for only North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’ s use, located near his cottage in Wonsan on the North’s east coast. The Washington-based Radio Free Asia reported on May 8, 2015, that the runway’s construction has been completed. (Yonhap)
That is what this Voice of America article brings up:
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (L) stands on the conning tower of a submarine during his inspection of the Korean People’s Army (KPA) Naval Unit 167 in this undated photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang.
South Korean officials Monday outlined their worries about North Korea’s first test missile launch from a submarine. Although the test does not immediately change the military status quo on the Korean peninsula, it shows Pyongyang is working on a difficult-to-detect missile system that could become capable of threatening countries around the world.
South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok confirmed that North Korea did test-fire an underwater ballistic missile on May 8. He called the test a serious and great concern and urged Pyongyang to immediately stop further development of this weapon. But the defense ministry spokesman also said the test indicates North Korea is years away from deploying this enhanced capability.
He said the ministry’s view is that North Korea’s test-fire this time shows it is in the early stage of development of a submarine launched ballistic missile program. According to the cases of advanced countries, he said, it takes about four to five years after the underwater test to complete the development of the system.
Still, the fact that Pyongyang is on a trajectory to develop a submarine based missile system means it could develop the capability to strike anywhere in the world, including the mainland of the United States.
This new capability would make less effective South Korea’s current Kill Chain missile system, intended to target and destroy North Korean missile launch sites.
The increased North Korean threat could trigger a new arms race on the Korean peninsula. It could also be used to justify the deployment of the United States anti-ballistic missile system called THAAD. Seoul had been reluctant to accept THAAD in part because China opposes its deployment. [Voice of America]
You can read more at the link, but since the development of an actual working missile launched from a submarine is years away I don’t think this gives the ROK the cover it needs to allow the US to deploy THAAD to Korea against China’s wishes.
It looks like the Kim regime has found another way to bring in hard currency:
A Chinese province bordering North Korea will kick off its first four-day train tour to the reclusive state later this month, according to China’s state media on Saturday, joining other border regions that have begun train tours to the North.
The tour will take Chinese tourists to North Korea’s capital of Pyongyang from the Chinese border city of Dandong on May 26, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported, citing a tour agency in the northeastern Chinese province of Liaoning.
The report is the latest sign that North Korea has approved more cross-border tours for Chinese tourists to earn hard currency since it lifted travel restrictions imposed due to concerns over the Ebola virus.
During the four-day tour, Chinese tourists will also visit the southern border city of Kaesong, Mt. Myohyang and the truce village of Panmunjom, which sits in the middle of the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two Koreas, according to the report.
The trip costs from 2,000 yuan (US$321.90) to 3,000 yuan, the report said, without elaborating. [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link, but I think it is safe to say that the North Koreans will not be detaining or shooting these tourists.
