In announcing the defection, Seoul’s Unification Ministry said Wednesday that Thae was the second-highest North Korean official at the embassy and the most senior North Korean diplomat ever to defect to South Korea.
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Thae, who is about 50, spent a decade in London, serving as deputy ambassador for the last three years. The letters read “Thae defected due to his disillusionment with the North’s regime under Kim Jong Un “. Analysts generally agree there are no significant signs Kim Jong Un’s regime is weakening.
The drills were held to coincide with the one year anniversary of an incident along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in 2015, in which two South Korean soldiers were severely wounded by a mine the ROK says was intentionally placed in the path of the patrol by North Korean forces.
Yesterday also marked the 40th anniversary of a 1976 incident in which a North Korean soldier killed two U.S. troops with their own axe when they tried to cut down a tree in the DMZ.
North Korea allows only citizens deemed most loyal to travel overseas, and Thae’s fleeing marks the latest in several defections. South Korea’s Defense Ministry didn’t comment on the issue at a briefing Thursday.
Many of roughly 27,000 North Koreans who have fled the impoverished, repressive North for the wealthy and democratic South struggle to assimilate and are economically marginalized, but well-connected defectors like Thae are treated as a valuable resource who can shed light on a secretive neighbour.
North Korea called the senior North Korean diplomat who defected earlier this week “human scum” and a criminal.
Significantly, North Korea no longer cares if the world sees its test failures, according to the latest analyses, allowing Pyongyang to more openly, aggressively and repeatedly test all of the key components needed for an attack. This is North Korea’s first official statement on the defection.
“Inter-Korean peace-time relations are really at their worst. with trade, and exchanges of people and dialogue all severed”, said Professor Yang Moo-Jin of the University of North Korean Studies.
He is now reportedly in South Korean territory with his family.
Pyongyang often accuses the South of kidnapping, or enticing its citizens to defect.
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This is a typical operation of the South Korean intelligence services and part of a plot to bring down North Korea.. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.
