The party nomenclature of the starving DPRK drives premium cars and wears Tiffany
They pay $50 for a steak, while the average salary in the country is $10. They change the shape of the eyelids to look European. They go to the gym to show off their wardrobe and beautiful body.
Almost 46 million people in the world today live in slavery. Such data was published at the end of May 2016 by the human rights organization Walk Free Foundation. The largest number of slaves are in India and North Korea. But this in no way applies to the 1% of the population whose life is spent in luxury in the North Korean way. First of all, we are talking about the children of high-ranking officials living in the capital of the DPRK - Pyongyang - who are not alien to the attributes of the Western “beautiful life”: trips to good restaurants, the services of plastic surgeons and fashionable clothes, with which North Koreans, first of all, can “show off” their fitness -hall.
The transition to a market economy, which the North Korean authorities are trying not to advertise, began 10-15 years ago and gained momentum during the era of Kim Jong-un. It brought the greatest dividends to the inner circle of the North Korean leader. Kim Jong-un took up the development of Pyongyang, whose wealthy areas are acquiring skyscrapers, fitness clubs and expensive restaurants, and for the local rich they are becoming their own parallel universe.
Luxury behind the bamboo curtain
In the spring of 2016, the South Korean publication The Chosun Ilbo reported that the DPRK leadership called on its citizens to prepare for famine “on the difficult path of revolution.” But none of this applies to wealthy millennials and their parents. In Pyongyang, there are restaurants, sushi bars and coffee shops for the rich, where you can order a beef steak for the price of half a year's salary of the average North Korean ($50) and wash it down with one of a dozen types of local draft beer. Those who prefer home cooking will be served bibimbap - a traditional Korean dish of rice with vegetables, boiled egg and meat. A serving of bibimbap will cost about $7, which is more expensive than a similar serving in Seoul. Rich North Koreans are also no strangers to the habit of leisurely drinking a cup of coffee. Drink prices in Pyongyang coffee shops range from $4 to $8. Often in restaurants in the North Korean capital, guests eat behind bamboo curtains. They are needed so that if foreigners appear in the establishment, they cannot see what is on the plates of the local rich.
There is also no shortage of products for the rich in Pyongyang: the main thing is to know where to go for them and to have currency with you. After all, she is the only one accepted at the two-story Potongan Rügen department store. Here you can find marbled beef, Norwegian salmon, European cheeses, olive oil and alcoholic drinks - from craft beer to first-class champagne. At the same time, the UN has been sounding the alarm for several years about the dire humanitarian situation in DPRK, reports TASS. About 70% of the population lacks access to the nutrition necessary to maintain health. The diet of the average North Korean consists of rice, wheat and corn, and at best he receives a small piece of meat for a holiday, the main of which are the birthdays of Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung.
In recent years, there have been more passenger cars on Pyongyang's roads, including luxury brands. This is despite UN sanctions banning the import of luxury goods such as yachts, luxury cars and precious stone jewelry into North Korea. In addition, the first taxi services began operating in the North Korean capital. Western correspondents counted about 5-7 such companies, The Independent reports.
Fashion in the gym and underground plastic surgery
Young and rich residents of the capital of the DPRK prefer brands such as Zara, H&M and Uniqlo in clothing. Their clothes are brought from neighboring China. In recent years, the country's first lady, Lee Sol-ju, has become a style guide for local women. Spouse Kim Jong-un appears in public wearing brightly colored suits, lace, trousers and even open-toe shoes, which are considered shocking in North Korea. The first lady can also afford a Dior bag and a Tiffany & Co necklace.
However, Korean women, even wealthy ones, may not appear on the street wearing everything. In April 2016, the North Korean government introduced a ban on wearing “Western clothing”; too short skirts and sleeveless tops are also banned in the country. “If your clothes are too bright and do not match North Korean style, an inspector may stop you on the street and write down your name. After which it will be broadcast on local radio,” these are the words of Lee Si Hyun, the daughter of a former high-ranking official, whose family fled from the DPRK to the United States, The Independent newspaper quotes. Because of this, fitness clubs have recently become the most fashionable places in Pyongyang. “In North Korea, people are forced to dress conservatively. So they go to gyms where they can show off fashionable things and their bodies. Girls prefer leggings and short tops. The most popular brand among women is Elle, and among men adidas and Nike,” adds Lee Si Hyun.
Another sign of North Korean prosperity is the ability to go to a plastic surgeon. Among the most popular operations is blepharoplasty. But changing the shape of the eyelids and giving the eyes a European look is not so easy. Plastic surgery is prohibited in North Korea. “You can get a visa and leave the country for medical reasons,” explains Lee Si Hyun. - But plastic surgery is not like that. Meanwhile, beauty is a competitive advantage in the country.” Therefore, North Korean women are forced to go to underground surgical offices, where the cost of blepharoplasty ranges from $50 to $200.
North Korean luxury is, of course, different from Western luxury. But in a country where out of a population of 25 million only 3 million have mobile phones, the opportunity to eat tasty and satisfying food, get a gym membership and fashionable leggings is already quite a lot.
Anastasia Novikova
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Kim Jong-un in the world of luxury: how the DPRK leader brightens up his life
The leader of the DPRK, one of the most closed and poorest countries in the world, loves comfort and luxury. Personal airstrips, yachts, private island, seven-star parties...
Satellite images showed that the construction of five runways was recently completed on the territory of Kim Jong-un's residences throughout the country. Curtis Melvin, an expert at the American-Korean research university Johns Hopkins University, told The Telegraph about this.
This is just one of many evidence of the sybaritic tendencies of the DPRK leader. This can be judged even from the minimum information that leaks behind the North Korean Iron Curtain.
Airplane
Kim Jong-un with his wife Ri Sol-ju
The runways that Curtis Melvin talks about didn't just happen right now. Kim Jong-un's father, Kim Jong-il, suffered from either aerophobia or persecution mania, and therefore traveled everywhere only by armored train. Unlike his father, the current leader North Korea prefers to fly.
Korean aircraft No. 1 is a Soviet-made IL-62. However, the interior decoration does not correspond to its age. In February 2015, during a flyover of Pyongyang, the first-ever photographs of the aircraft's interior were taken. Experts then described the furnishings as luxurious, noting mahogany trim, ivory leather furniture and massive crystal ashtrays.
Kim Jong-un (second from left) and Princess 95MY yacht (right)
Another expensive means of transportation for Kim Jong-un is a 29-meter yacht manufactured by the British company Princess Yachts International. The North Korean leader first took a 10-day boat trip on it in 2013. What was surprising then was not so much the fact that the Secretary General had a $7 million ship, but rather the way in which it got to North Korea. UN sanctions prohibit the import into the country of such luxury goods as yachts, racing cars and simply luxury cars, and jewelry made of precious stones.
Perhaps Kim Jong-un's personal fleet is not limited to one ship. In the port city of Wonsan, the secretary general's family owns an estate with a huge territory, on which, in addition to several villas and private beaches, there is also a yacht mooring.
A former basketball player also mentioned a certain even larger yacht. Dennis Rodman. “This is something between a ferry and a Disney cruise ship,” the athlete described the 60-meter vessel.
Personal island
Dennis Rodman, a former NBA star, is generally a private visitor to North Korea. He first arrived there in March 2013 and became so close with Kim Jong-un that he soon began to call him his best friend. He also spoke about the life of the Secretary General after spending a week with him on his private island. He described the time as one endless "seven-star party" with flowing cocktails and jet skis.
Kim Jong-un (left) and Dennis Rodman (right)
Denis Rodman did not specify where the North Korean leader’s private island is located. But he did not spare flattering epithets when describing him. “It’s like in Hawaii or Ibiza, the only difference is that it’s all just for him (Kim Jong-un). If you drink tequila, then this is the best tequila,” the basketball player admired.
Personal cable car
Another attribute of a beautiful life that appeared in the DPRK with the light hand of Kim Jong-un is the only ski resort in the country, Masik. It was built in just 10 months and opened on December 31, 2013. Then a photo of the North Korean leader in a hat and a warm coat, riding alone on a ski lift, circulated in the media. By the way, their own overhead road was built for the Secretary General in Masik.
Kim Jong-un
Alcohol, watches and electronics
Luxury goods can be afforded not only by Kim Jong-un, but also by his immediate circle. In 2013, the South Korean parliament released a report stating that imports of luxury goods into the DPRK doubled to $645.8 million during Kim Jong-un's first year in power. $30 million was spent on luxury alcohol alone in 2012, another $37 million for electronics and $8.2 million for limited edition watches.
Anastasia Novikova
Let's start with the fact that no one knows for sure what exactly happened to Kim Jong-un. This is the answer in a nutshell, now let's go point by point. Kim Jong-un is a young man, but, let’s say, very overweight. For his age, he’s a very fat young man, let’s face it. Especially by Korean standards. To a certain extent, this is family, because his father and his grandfather were also distinguished by an increased tendency to be overweight - it’s not just overeating, it’s their general complexion and metabolism. My father had metabolic problems and severe diabetes. Nobody knows what the young man has. Recently, Kim Jong-un has appeared in public with a noticeable limp. North Korean television recently showed a newsreel showing him limping, but, so to speak, leading to new victories. In another place they showed him sweating like hail, and this is also a little strange. And all this was accompanied by messages in the spirit that he was suffering from medical problems, but still led us.
The appearance of such messages on official television is a clear signal to the population, or more precisely, to the lower elite, that the top leader is ill.
The population is not very worried, but the lower elite is worried. His absence, which lasted almost a month, was noticed by everyone who was interested. He was last seen in public with his wife at a concert on September 3.
What follows from this? But by and large, nothing follows. The man is still 30 years old. At this age, people rarely get sick seriously and for a long time. I believe that Kim Jong-un will be cured. He has access to medicine at a very good level. Those who have dealt with North Korean elite doctors who treat the top, they unanimously say that these specialists are quite competent and trained according to the best world standards.
Was there a coup?
Serious talk about a coup is completely ruled out for one simple reason. Firstly, so to speak, no noticeable changes at the top, no signs of confusion. At all.
And secondly, and this is the main thing, over the past month and a half, the North Korean state mechanism has been writing out quite intricate, but quite meaningful maneuvers.
And it is almost impossible to imagine that such maneuvers are carried out without the constant leadership of the first person.
North Korean maneuvers
There is a sharp intensification of foreign policy activity. Moreover, it all fits into one direction: the desire, so to speak, to make friends with everyone and get money from everyone. What have we seen in recent months and weeks? Well, firstly, a sharp intensification of relations with Russia. In addition, an attempt to solve the seemingly insoluble problem with the Japanese, who were once abducted by North Korean intelligence services from Japanese territory, and, accordingly, thus restore and normalize relations with Japan. Finally, there were attempts to intensify foreign policy in Europe, where a high-ranking member of the Central Committee apparatus traveled. Attempts to strengthen promotion to Southeast Asia, where the delegation also visited.
And finally, a small sensation happened: a North Korean delegation of an absolutely incredible level, simply absolutely incredible, arrived in South Korea, in Incheon, formally for the closing of the Asian Games. A delegation of this level has never been sent to Seoul. The delegation is headed by the second and third persons in the country.
And what does Russia have to do with it?
In general, China is now almost the only supplier of aid to the country. So North Korean diplomats are trying to find some options to find a counterbalance to China. Russia, of course, is the first thing that comes to mind.
From this point of view, of course, the Ukrainian crisis is very good for them, because their logic is this: now Russia, on the one hand, is almost like the Soviet Union - rich. On the other hand, she - again almost like the Soviet Union - is quarreling with America, which means that the Russians will come to us again and give us lots and lots of money.
And perestroika is underway
It started very slowly, very carefully. Two things have happened recently: on July 28, 2012, Kim Jong-un issued a directive (it was not subject to publication, it was taken out later), according to which something like a transition to family contracting is being carried out in the village. Formally, it looks like this: it is allowed to register very small agricultural units, consisting of four to five people. Now a unit can be very small, but before it was 15 people. At first glance, it would seem, what difference does it make: 5 or 15? And the difference is huge. The fact is that five people is the average household size. That is, this is a signal that the family must register itself as such a “small link”, to which a certain territory, certain areas of fields are assigned. Formally, of course, nothing is transferred into ownership to anyone, God forbid, and formally this is still not a peasant family, but a link, but in practice, of course, it turns out to be a moderate form of family contract. It seems that the transition to family contracting in the style of late 70s China is beginning.
As a result, last year, for the first time in more than 20 years, North Korea harvested a harvest that almost covered the country’s minimum grain needs. That is, for the first time the country was able to make ends meet without external help.
This year has been a very difficult drought, but reports indicate that there will be a good harvest again. That is, the system works.
Kosygin reform
There is a weak attempt in industry to carry out the Kosygin reform. State organizations were told to stop chasing Gosplan and Gossnab officials: set up sales yourself, look for suppliers yourself, get involved yourself. Your task is to make only certain contributions to the budget, and then you are on your own.
In practice, this, of course, strengthens the creeping privatization that has been going on there for a very long time. That is, our idea that this is such a reserve of Stalinism is a strong lie. Because there really is already a very large part of the economy in private hands.
What about publicity...
Ideologically, a completely different trend is the tightening of nuts, which is quite noticeable. They are actively pursuing those who store and copy South Korean TV shows and programs. They began to try to punish for this. Previously, they also punished people, but usually they didn’t catch them, but now they started catching them. They sharply increased control over the border with China, which was previously very poorly guarded. They began to fight against escapes and emigration. They began to carry out propaganda that if you come to Seoul, then you will feel very, very bad there. Plus, of course, constant rumors about some kind of repression, executions, and so on.
Perhaps they are exaggerated, but these rumors, which periodically splash out on the pages of the international press, are, in general, almost all really authentic rumors from Pyongyang.
That is, it is not a fact that these generals were actually shot from a grenade launcher, as they say, it is not a fact that they were shot at all. But what they say about this in Pyongyang, many people believe in it, is a fact.
Anecdote about Putin and
Jokes began to appear, in small quantities, and they began to laugh at the system. But the leaders are inviolable. There is respect somewhere, but there is also fear. And it’s such an instinct that we don’t joke about these topics. That is, conversations have begun, there is grumbling in the country. And there are even jokes about the authorities, and there are anecdotes. Very often, surprisingly often, Soviet jokes are turned around. I still remember such jokes in my youth. But senior management is practically untouchable for now. It’s too dangerous, it’s death, it’s death to joke about them.
One joke, I heard it in the Russian version, and then heard it in Korean: “Kim Jong Il and Putin are arguing about who has the better security guard (well, in the original it was Brezhnev and one of the American presidents). They say: well, let's order them to throw themselves into the abyss. The Russian guard shouts: “No, I won’t throw myself!” I have a wife and children." And the North Korean rushes. They intercept him and say: “Well, what are you doing, where are you going?” And he: “Well, of course - I have a wife and children.”
This didn't happen before at all. The first instances of some jokes on political topics, well, God willing, were seven or eight years ago.
But this is not funny...
One of the main threats to the stability of the regime is, of course, the death of leaders. Kim Jong-un, of course, is young, but anything can happen. The people have a feeling that the country should be ruled by someone from the Kim family.
If suddenly Kim dies, they will apparently try to find a replacement for him from among his closest relatives, but it will be a little strange and somehow strained.
There is always the threat of a Tunisian scenario. Some kind of showdown on the ground, some kind of fight in the market, which develops into a social explosion. Because people’s dissatisfaction, in general, has been palpable lately, and even this is visible. That is, the situation is a little similar, perhaps, to the Soviet Union of the 70s. There is no dissidence at all, and not only because people shoot for it, but also because it doesn’t occur to most people. However, the feeling that everything in the country is going somewhere very wrong is more or less universal. And China, by the way, is not South Korea, but China is perceived as an example of how it should be done.
Then, it is possible that someone will actually stage a coup or some kind of split will occur at the top.
If the unity of the elite is disrupted, if the elite begins to openly sort things out among themselves, I can very easily imagine how the system will begin to collapse.
In my opinion, the most likely thing is a gradual, so to speak, growing discontent in the country and a spontaneous explosion. And all this will be very bad.
If an explosion starts there, then this explosion will be very unpleasant. This will not be a velvet revolution. It will be a lot of mess, it will be blood. The authorities will fight desperately, there are few of them, but they are prepared, they have the ability, they have skills, they have caches of weapons that they created for guerrilla warfare and which in this case they will naturally uncork.
That is, there will be mochilovo there, and mochilovo in a country in which, generally speaking, there are about ten nuclear warheads, well, guys, this is not good.
Collapse of the DPRK
You can draw such terrible scenarios, and quite realistic ones at that... Firstly, the DPRK has somewhere between 30 and a little to 50 kilograms of plutonium - that’s 10 nuclear warheads. Under guard. And if some National Salvation Front and National Liberation Front kill each other, one transmitting calls for help to Seoul, and the other sending the same calls to Beijing, then it is not entirely clear who will guard these charges.
Plus, this is not yet an established amount of purified uranium, of which it is not clear at all how much there is. Plus, huge stockpiles of chemical weapons. Moreover, purely technically, these shells are in very poor condition - moving them is dangerous.
Another very important point that is forgotten: for a very long time, and partly even now, the North Koreans relied on the doctrine of people's war.
This means simply a huge number of ordinary, conventional weapons. There are machine guns, light machine guns, and so on. Simply in gigantic quantities. In general, all this, of course, will be a mess.
New North Korea
Speaking about the long term, I currently see three options for the future. Or Kim Jong-un is somehow slowly, carefully, very carefully carrying out reforms, while maintaining a very repressive regime. For him, the issue of repression is a matter of survival.
In order for reformed North Korea to remain intact and not collapse, you need to be incredibly tough and cruel, extremely cruel. There is no other way, the temptation is too great, South Korea is around the corner.
The second option is unification. Moreover, the unification is under the control of the south. Any other options for unification now are simply demagogy or fantasy, I would say frankly.
And the third option is the emergence of a pro-Chinese puppet or semi-puppet government in the northern part of the peninsula. And formally, all this will still be called the DPRK, even there will be such calls for unification, formal, but in fact it will be an eternal or more or less eternal division of the country into two parts, into two different states.
The fall of Kim Jong-un's regime could have unpredictable consequences for the entire world. Many believe that the threat of war posed by a dictator and the nuclear escalation he provokes is not as bad as regime change in North Korea.
Assuming Kim Jong Un disappears from the scene, he could be overthrown by his countrymen, or assassinated by hired foreign agents, or die in a devastating nuclear war.
Will the world breathe a sigh of relief without this dictator? Maybe not.
In reality, the collapse of the North Korean regime could set off a chain of events that would undermine the stability of Asia—and the world. Many actors on the world stage appear to prefer the current situation to an uncertain future without Kim.
"China will never allow chaos and war on the Korean Peninsula," Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations Liu Jieyi said Monday. This statement illustrates Beijing's fear of large-scale and unexpected changes in its neighboring country.
And while Kim Jong Un may have few admirers outside his closed state, in many ways it is reasonable to fear his overthrow. China's concerns are to some extent shared by South Korea.
This is what can happen if the dictatorship falls.
Catastrophic flow of refugees
If the regime falls, millions of North Koreans will move toward the country's borders, whether war breaks out or not.
Partly they will flee to escape the military and others loyal to the regime and fighting for survival, partly due to lack of food.
Context
Fat Kim threatens Trump again
American Thinker 09/06/2017You won’t envy Ukraine
Dagbladet 08/17/2017Moscow doesn't care about Kim Jong-un's missiles
Foreign Policy 07/18/2017Kim's missile is a real threat to the West
Die Welt 07/05/2017Is Kim Jong-un really a strong-willed person?
Viewpoint 05/09/2017 Even with good harvests, North Korean agriculture is unable to feed the population, and several million people are believed to have died of starvation in the 1990s.The first harvest of this year was 30% smaller than normal.
When the regime falls, the food distribution system will also stop working. The payment system will collapse, leading to a hoarding of goods, which in turn will worsen food shortages.
For China, millions of hungry refugees storming the border Yalu River are a real nightmare and a threat to stability. South Korea will also not be able to cope with a flow of people of this magnitude.
New tyrant
If Kim is overthrown by a coup, there is a very high risk that he will be replaced by an equally brutal and unpredictable ruler. Whoever controls North Korea's disproportionately large army controls the country. There are no alternative supports for power.
Nuclear weapons are here to stay, and neither is the threat of their use.
Another likely scenario is that competing warlords will divide the country, and the situation will escalate into civil war. Which, in turn, will, of course, worsen the migration and humanitarian crises.
Weapons of mass destruction in action
The North Korean regime not only has dozens of nuclear warheads, but also large quantities of plutonium and enriched uranium, which are used to produce weapons. In addition, the country is believed to have the world's third largest stockpile of chemical weapons (after the United States and Russia), as well as biological weapons.
All of these doomsday weapons are stored in various locations around the country, many of which are likely classified. Finding them and neutralizing them will be an incredibly difficult task for the would-be “victor” forces after the North Korean collapse.
Otherwise, there will be a very high risk that the weapons will be used in desperation by the surviving North Korean military or sold to terrorists in some other region of the world.
Confrontation between China and the USA
When the Pyongyang regime exits the game after the war, others will enter the game, not least to solve the refugee crisis, provide emergency aid and control weapons of mass destruction.
South Korea's goal is to reunite both halves of the Korean state. But reunification on South Korea's terms is a red rag for Beijing, as it would likely mean US troops stationed along the Chinese border.
A situation in which South Korea, China and the United States simultaneously occupy North Korea threatens to be explosive.
The least dangerous option is for China to set up something like a puppet state in the north—a smaller version of the old Korea without weapons of mass destruction. If the US and South Korea agree to this.
A much more dangerous situation—and worse, quite likely—is that the U.S. and Chinese militaries engage in direct confrontation on the Korean Peninsula, perhaps by mistake due to the chaos reigning there. In the worst case, such incidents can escalate into a military conflict between two powerful states.
InoSMI materials contain assessments exclusively from foreign media and do not reflect the position of the InoSMI editorial staff.
The situation on the Korean Peninsula is teetering on the brink of a full-scale war
The situation on the Korean Peninsula continues to heat up. The United States and South Korea have been conducting large-scale air exercises Vigilant ACE since Monday in Gangwon Province near the 38th parallel separating South and North Korea. Allied aircraft are practicing conducting targeted airstrikes against a potential enemy. About 230 aircraft are involved in the maneuvers, including B-1B Lancer strategic bombers and F-22 Raptor and F-35A stealth aircraft.
These maneuvers in Washington and Seoul are called a response to Pyongyang’s latest launch of the Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile, which took place a week ago. The allies do not hide the fact against whom the air strikes are being practiced, even in official communications.
"Several B-1B Lancers, accompanied by F-22 Raptors, conducted mock bombing maneuvers, demonstrating the Allies' ability and determination to respond forcefully to North Korean missile and nuclear provocations," the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.
North Korea says war is inevitable
Meanwhile, the rhetoric of US officials towards the DPRK remains demonstrably harsh and irreconcilable. Washington continues to threaten the North Koreans with a preemptive strike. At the same time, threats from the world hegemon are mixed with cheap antics and insults voiced by Donald Trump against North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
The day before, the North Korean Foreign Ministry commented on US-South Korean air exercises near the DPRK border and statements by Washington officials. Pyongyang believes that US military fanatics have already made the war on the Korean Peninsula an “established reality”, and it is only a matter of time before it breaks out in full.
The rhetoric of US officials towards the DPRK remains demonstrably harsh and irreconcilable. Photo: www.globallookpress.com
Let us add that calls coming from Russia and China, neighbors of the DPRK, for all parties to sit down at the negotiating table and begin searching for a compromise are encountering resistance from Washington. In particular, Moscow and Beijing propose that the United States and South Korea stop any provocative actions in the region, including military exercises like Vigilant ACE, and the DPRK, in turn, should abandon new nuclear missile tests. However, Pyongyang understands that their nuclear program today remains the only factor that in one way or another guarantees protection from American aggression. Therefore, until the complete detente of tension and the signing of a peace treaty with South Korea (formally, both sides have remained in a state of war since the signing of the armistice in 1953. And all attempts made by the leadership of the DPRK to begin peace negotiations with the United States were ignored by Washington) talk about the curtailment of the North Korean missile- nuclear program is at least naive. And Kim Jong-un, mindful of the fate of Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi, who were also declared in Washington to be the center of the “axis of evil,” will not make any unilateral concessions, because such will inevitably be interpreted as a sign of weakness. And to give in to the main hyena of the planet means dooming yourself and your country to inevitable destruction.
American athletes may withdraw from Olympics
The tense situation caused by the provocative attacks of the United States against the DPRK has even jeopardized the holding of the XXIII Winter Olympic Games, which are scheduled to open on February 9, 2018 in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
It is noteworthy that the United States, which made every effort to exclude the Russian team from the Olympic competitions, may itself refuse to participate in the games. US Permanent Representative to the UN Nikki Haley admitted that the issue of US participation in the Olympics “remains open.” Many American Olympic athletes are simply afraid to go to the Olympics due to the unpredictability of the situation on the Korean Peninsula.
"Hunt" for Kim Jong-un
Unfortunately, at the moment the situation on the Korean Peninsula continues to teeter on the brink of war. Reports that official Seoul is allocating large amounts of money for the creation of a special unit, the purpose of which will be the physical destruction of the North Korean leader and those from his inner circle, do not help to de-escalate tensions. The total amount planned to be spent on the hunt for Kim Jong-un reaches $24 million. It is obvious that the training of such special forces, their equipment with everything necessary, as well as the authorization and conduct of any operations will be carried out not even by the leadership of South Korea, which, objectively speaking, is not interested in a war on the peninsula, but by representatives of the US military and political command. It is appropriate to assume that Washington is betting that the decapitation of North Korea will make it impossible for Pyongyang to immediately use its nuclear arsenal in the event of American aggression.
However, as the international practice of intelligence services shows, the effectiveness of the actions of such special forces is extremely insignificant. It is worth recalling that the late Fidel Castro, who was a much more public leader than Kim, survived over 600 attempts on his life. The American intelligence services also failed to eliminate Saddam Hussein when he was president of Iraq.
Fidel Castro, who was a much more public leader than Kim, survived over 600 attempts on his life. Photo: www.globallookpress.com
As for the South Korean intelligence services, they also once hunted Kim Il Sung. In 1968, even a special squad of the most frostbitten criminals was formed to kill him, who were promised a pardon if they completed the task (the so-called squad 684). However, at the last moment the operation was canceled, and the criminals were refused pardon. Ultimately, they rebelled and started a rebellion, during which every last one was destroyed.
To be fair, it should be said that the North Korean intelligence services at one time repeatedly tried to organize the physical liquidation of South Korean dictators, but also failed. Also in 1968, 31 soldiers from the so-called Detachment 124 of the North Korean Special Operations Forces attacked the residence of South Korean President Park Chung-hee in Seoul - the so-called Blue House. However, the special operation ended in failure. During the battle with South Korean units, "Detachment 124" was destroyed. Only two of his fighters survived, one of whom, Park Jae-kyung, managed to reach the North Korean border, where he was greeted as a national hero and subsequently became a general in the Korean People's Army, and the other, Kim Shin-do, was captured, repented and subsequently became a pastor. one of the churches in Seoul.
Pavlenko Dmitry
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