Posts Tagged ‘kim il sung’
Kim Jong Un’s Foreign Policy Record: The Juche Revolution Continues
During his first year in power, Kim Jong Un maintained the strategic foreign policy line he inherited from his father without making any major adjustments. In a nutshell, that approach seeks to alter the regional balance of power in North Korea's favor, expand its resource base, and gain international recognition by building up strategic arms [...]
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 [...]
A Plan for Marshal Kim
What would YOU do if after attending a privileged boarding school and a few years of university abroad your destiny suddenly catapulted you into a position of highest authority and responsibility for a troubled and impoverished country, one seen as part of an “axis of evil?” This is exactly the situation Marshal Kim Jong Un faces today and I [...]
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. [...]
North Korea’s Ideology after April 2012: Continuity or Disruption?
Introduction Until the death of Kim Jong Il in December 2011, the big question affecting nearly every aspect of North Korean affairs—domestic or international—was who would be his successor. Now that this issue has been resolved by the selection and promotion of Kim Jong Un, the focus has shifted to the nature and sustainability of the new [...]
