Posts Tagged ‘jang song thaek’
Part III: Overhauling the Legacy Government
This is Part III of a three-part series written by Dr. Alexandre Mansourov assessing the leadership changes during Kim Jong Un’s first year in office. This article will analyze the main drivers and directions shaping the transformation of the government Kim inherited from his father. It argues that in the past year, the young leader has [...]
Part II: The Kim Family Reigns: Preserving the Monarchy and Strengthening the Party-State
This is Part II of a three-part analytical series written by Dr. Alexandre Y. Mansourov assessing the leadership changes during Kim Jong Un’s initial year in office. This article will analyze key dynamics within the Kim family, including the rising influence of Kim Jong Un’s uncle Jang Song Thaek and the emergence of Kim’s wife, Ri Sol Ju as [...]
Part I: A Dynamically Stable Regime
Editors' Note: Beginning today, the first anniversary of Kim Jong Un’s assumption of power in North Korea, 38 North is publishing a three-part analytical series written by Dr. Alexandre Y. Mansourov assessing the leadership changes during Kim’s initial year in office. The first article, published today, addresses three fundamental [...]
The Diminishing Returns of China’s North Korea Policy
North Korea’s economic dependence on China may have reached an all-time high, but Kim Jong Un is determined to set a course for greater political independence from Beijing. This has left China in a state that one insider has referred to as ‘desperate’ over its rocky relations with the country since Kim Jong Un came to power. But given that [...]
North Korea in Focus: New Power Struggle or Intelligence Failure
Has the North Korean power struggle reached a point of crisis? Are we on the eve of convulsions among the top North Korean leaders? These questions have emerged in the wake of Vice Marshal and Chief of the General Staff of the North Korean People’s Army Ri Yong Ho’s removal from all his posts. Indeed, no one at the governmental intelligence [...]
Budget Blanks and Blues
Last time I wrote in these pages, in late April, “Party Time in Pyongyang,” I promised a Part II. This is a bad habit of mine. To be honest, what happens is this: Enthused by the topic at hand, I write far too much and swiftly reach (or exceed) my word limit. I resolve in all sincerity to return to the topic and the parts I had to leave out. [...]
