Kim Jong-un Regime Research Articles

Book review: Scott A. Snyder and Kyung-Ae Park, (Eds.), North Korea’s Foreign Policy: The Kim Jong-Un Regime in a Hostile World.

Book review: Scott A. Snyder and Kyung-Ae Park, (Eds.), <i>North Korea’s Foreign Policy: The Kim Jong-Un Regime in a Hostile World</i>.

Finding Symptoms of (Under)Privileged Urban Nature in a Socialist City: The Case of Pyongyang, North Korea

North Korean media refer to Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, as a “city in a park,” and urban researchers explore the potential for Pyongyang to become a sustainable city. Given North Korean media’s function as a propaganda organization supporting the Kim Jong-un regime and consistently producing positive content about the regime, we can employ alternative and more objective methods to assess Pyongyang’s sustainability. This article seeks to find unsustainable aspects of Pyongyang by analyzing satellite images while maintaining distance from North Korean media, which monopolizes the production of knowledge that defines Pyongyang as a green and sustainable city. In the socialist city of Pyongyang, there are politically, economically, and socially privileged areas, even if they are not as clearly evident as in capitalist cities. These areas exhibit privileged urban nature, as evidenced by a less polluted and higher quality natural environment. Specifically, I estimate hybrid spaces where the line between privileged and underprivileged blurs. Although they belong to relatively privileged areas, residents take certain risks, referred to as an (under)privileged urban nature. These (under)privileged urban natures could crack the dominant discourse on seeing Pyongyang as a sustainable city.

A Study on Practical Measures to Respond to North Korea's Kim Jong-un Regime's Recent Operations against South Korea

A Study on Practical Measures to Respond to North Korea's Kim Jong-un Regime's Recent Operations against South Korea

북한의 SDGs 달성을 위한 입법과 정책의 변화

North Korea is actively utilizing the SDGs as a means to emphasize the unfairness and contradictions of the U.S. and other U.N. sanctions, saying that they are hindering peace-making and global partnerships, including the promotion of the SDGs and development cooperation, and to inform the international community that they are threatening North Korea's survival in non-political areas such as energy, food, water and sanitation, and the climate crisis. Furthermore, by actively embracing the UN SDGs, the DPRK is emphasizing its image as a ‘normal country’ and a ‘moderate country’ by accepting universal norms and values of the international community, including the United Nations, and cooperating with the international community, and recognizing the SDGs as a key means to attract development cooperation from the international community. In other words, the DPRK is establishing an implementation system by linking the UN SDGs to the Kim Jong-un regime's mid- and long-term national development plans, including the National Development Strategy and National Plan. Analyzing the specifics of the linkages and understanding the implications of the North Korean regime's policies can have important implications for advancing inter-Korean relations in the future. North Korea's legislative and policy responses to the implementation of the SDGs, particularly in the area of climate and environment, have so far fallen far short of the 30-year target. Nevertheless, North Korea's diplomatic diversification strategy to actively deal with the prolonged sanctions and diplomatic isolation is centered on the United Nations. North Korea's internal development strategy is also seeking a new direction, and the five-year plan for national economic development established at the 8th Party Congress in January 2021 and the new third UNSF (2022-2026) are also clarifying its intention to implement the SDGs with the international community. Among them, the renewable energy and circular economy sectors are being promoted by North Korea with a very active and urgent will to fulfill the SDGs, which is seen as a way to overcome the internal and external economic difficulties faced by North Korea. In addition, the disaster response field due to the climate crisis is being promoted by the North Korean regime with all its might. Given the need for the United Nations to include integrated SDGs on the Korean Peninsula in the new third UNSF (2022-2026), it is time for North and South Korea to work together with the United Nations to implement the SDGs, and we believe that cooperative projects in the field of climate and environment will be a key driver.

북한의 역사 교과서에 나타난 역사 정체성

This study focuses on the descriptions of North Korean history textbooks about the Japanese colonial period(1905-1945) in the Korean Peninsula, and aims to analyze North Korean textbooks by utilizing four materials including the ‘Joseon Ryeoksa’(Joseon History) and ‘Hyeongmyeong Ryeoksa’(History of the Revolutionary) published under the Kim Jong-il regime and the ‘Ryeoksa’ (History) and ‘Hyeongmyeong Ryeoksa’(History of the Revolutionary) under the Kim Jong-un regime. This study also focuses on their descriptions about the empires and the revolutionary struggle, and examines differences and changes between the Kim Jong-il and Kim Jong-un regimes. Findings of this study are summarized as follows: North Korean history has been a history of ‘resistance,’ of struggle against the imperialism. Their values had been suppressed by the empires and their resistance was sublimated into a revolutionary struggle. Kim Il-song led their history and he was the only figure who could legitimize the North Korean history. The North Korean historical identity, which legitimates resistance history against the empires, was projected through its national, social, and cultural learning materials.

김정은 정권의 생존전략과 ‘과학·기술·교육’의 역할

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the role of the Kim Jong-un regime's survival strategy as the topic of "science, technology, and education" emphasized by North Korea in its push for the five-year national economic development plan from 2021. Considering that "science, technology, and education" is an important factor in economic growth in the (neo) growth theory, the Kim Jong-un regime's five-year economic development plan must be key factors for the success of the plan. In addition, an analysis of why the North Korean authorities make "science, technology, and education" an important topic through 2,228 pages published by the 『Rodong』 Newspaper in 2021 showed that the Kim Jong-un regime's "science, technology, and education" has a strong political and social propaganda meaning and is used as a kind of political instigation/control tool. “Science, technology, and education” presented by Kim Jong-un are tools to control the thoughts and actions of internal members to maintain the regime by presenting advanced images to residents.

Where and With Whom Did They Go?

This study explores the compositional characteristics of the hereditary regimes of North Korea, specifically regarding regime change through the transmission of traditional authority over three generations. The research questions of this study are as follows: How did North Korea successfully make the traditional hereditary regimes handed down to the son and grandson? Who were the political elites establishing and supporting these hereditary regimes? This study analyzes "on-the-spot guidance" articles reported in Rodong Sinmun, North Korea's official medium. According to the analysis, on-the-spot guidance seems to contribute to building and maintaining North Korea's hereditary regimes for three generations. In addition, it implies that the Kim Jong-un regime has a relatively low risk of collapse due to internal resistance, which has transpired for quite a while.

북한 보건의료 체계의 한계와 남북 협력방안

The global COVID-19 pandemic took millions of lives away. Fortunately, the spread of the virus seems to be diminished; it is obvious that international society will be reorganized by the ideas of “health security” and “human security”. However, in the case of North Korea, it does not reveal objective and reliable medical data, so international society has difficulties figuring out its current status. North Korea had insisted that taking care of people’s health by the principle of medical service is the state’s responsibility. However, the official system collapsed during the economic crisis in the 1990s, and the North Korean people’s health index also plummeted. Besides, two Korea’s medical service capability is getting dichotomized, so an alternative is needed. The Kim Jong-un regime set the principle of “politics of affection” and emphasized “people first policy.” The hygiene and medical policy, which is closely linked to people’s life and health, is the core element of the “people first policy.” Therefore, it is the field (humanitarian aid) that North Korea most likely accepts under the current sanction status. Moreover, this project can be a breakthrough that can overcome the current stalemate. Therefore, it is essential to prepare realistic and systematic cooperative projects which can bring a positive response from North Korea. The health and medical cooperation may contribute to establishing a new inter-Korean cooperation paradigm which is practical and realistic.

The Increased Defection of North Koreans Following the Collapse of the Market Economy Due to the Kim Jong-Un Regime’s Military Reinforcement

Purpose: In this study, North Korea s recent military advancements including supersonic missile test launch and long-range missile test, and systematic, widespread and terrible human rights violations in North Korea including genocide, murder, enslavement, torture, detention, rape, forced abortion, sexual violence and discrimination based on politics, religion, race and gender, forced mobilization of residents, enforced disappearance, and inten-tional extension of starvation have been practiced, while the North Korean defectors have fled to South Korea every year in search of freedom, and the perception and attitude towards job satisfaction by gender and age have been analyzed for the police officers serving in the security police organization, which is recognized as the most closed police organization for police officers by age and gender. Based on which, it is intended to discuss policy measures to create an organization which can increase the job satisfaction of the security police with a new or-ganizational culture which matches the ever evolving military advancements in North Korea and the human rights crisis. Method: In this study, 100 police officers serving in the security department who have work experiences related to the North Korean defectors were surveyed based on the self-administration method by using the South Korean police officers as a group in 2020 in order to analyze the perception and attitude towards the job satisfaction based on gender and age targeting the police officers serving in the security police organization. Results: As a result of the analysis performed, across most of the questions with statistical significance for the gender of the security police managing the North Korean defectors due to the ever evolving military advance-ments in North Korea and the human rights crisis, the male security police officers turned out to have a relative more positive evaluation of the level of job satisfaction than the female police officers. Furthermore, in terms of age, the positive perception and attitude of the older age group is high across most of the questions, whereas the negative perception is relatively high for the age group in their 20s. Regarding the relationship between gender and age, it turned out that the males in their 50s and above and females in their 30s demonstrated the highest positive perception and attitude for the job satisfaction. Conclusion: In conclusion, first, the culture within the security police organization needs to be improved and will also need to be transformed into a security police organization which can fully demonstrate the potential and creativity of the security police through the fairness of personnel management. Second, it is very urgent to enact laws (rules) to ensure the organizational stability of the security police. Third, it is necessary to secure the equip-ment and professional manpower to acquire the security resources, and strengthen the specialized education. In order to be renewed as a new security police which responds to the rapidly changing security environment, the number of young security police officers needs to be increased, and the young police officers need to derive new ideas and be involved in collecting, analyzing, and producing information related to the various crimes (including multiple crimes) against the North Korean defectors toward becoming leaders on their own as they respond to police policies and decision-makers with the measures for the safe settlement of the North Korean defectors and crime prevention, whereby the job satisfaction of the security police will be further developed into a more progres-sive organizational culture.

Crisis of Kim Jong-Un Regime of North Korea and the Safety of North Korean Defectors: An Analysis of Job Involvement of the South Korean Security Police

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to recognize the importance of the security police officers work or job in-volvement by examining the difference in terms of the job involvement according to the general characteristics of the South Korean security police, and furthermore, present the basic data for the organizational operation and improving the work efficiency of members. Method: In this study, 100 trainees of the Police Human Resources Development Institute, a police institute of education in Korea in 2020, were surveyed and the convenience sampling method was used for the sampling method, followed by the Self-Administration Method. An investigation was conducted. Among the collected ques-tionnaires, 91 questionnaires were used as valid samples, except for the data with insincere responses or omission of some of the details of the survey. The measurement tool is a questionnaire, and the data processing is a statis-tical package program, SPSS 23.0 Program, and the frequency analysis was performed to examine and understand the general characteristics, while the Cronbach s α coefficient was calculated to validate the reliability of the questionnaire. The confirmatory factor analysis was performed to classify the job involvement related factors, and the t-Test and the one-way ANOVA were performed to examine and understand the difference in terms of the job involvement of the security police according to the general characteristics. Results: In this study, the confirmatory factor analysis was performed to validate the conceptual validity of the measurement tool, and the concept reliability was all over 0.8, and the mean variance (AVE) values all exceeded 0.5, and hence, the concentration validity for all variables was evidently secured. Furthermore, the reliability of the questionnaire turned out to be .798 of Cronbach s α coefficient. As an empirical result, the difference in the job involvement according to general characteristics is, first, the difference in terms of the job involvement of the security police according to gender is higher in women than in men. Second, there was no significant difference in the job involvement of the security police according to age in the difference in terms of the job involvement of the security police according to age. Third, the difference in the job involvement of the security police according to educational background is higher than high school graduates with community college, 4 year college, and grad-uate degrees. Fourth, the difference in terms of the job involvement of the security police according to the number of employees in the affiliated organization is higher than that of 21 or more people than 10 people or less, 11 or more people and 15 people or less, and 15 or more people and 20 people or less. Fifth, there is no difference in the job involvement of the security police according to the area of service. Conclusion: As a result of the research process it turned out that there was a difference in the job involvement of the security police according to gender, educational background, and the number of employees in the affiliated organization, and there was no difference in terms of the job involvement according to age and the area of ser-vice. Hence, based on the in-depth and various studies related to job involvement according to the characteristics of the study subjects, a plan ought to be presented to enable the security police to more fully perform their original duties.

A Path Analysis of Political Institutionalization and Economic Policy under the Kim Jong-un Regime

This study explores North Korea’s pathway to attain the goal of an economic powerhouse sustaining the party-centric politics and Kim Jong-un’s monolithic leadership system. The economic-nuclear parallel development policy strongly envisioned by the Kim Jong-un regime worked for political institutionalization and core national strategy in a transition period. The strategic priority of the policy was given to nuclearization although North Korea carried out economic measures including “Five-year Economic Development Strategy” to ameliorate people’s living. The plenary meeting of the central committee of the party revised the parallel policy on April 20, 2018. On the declaration of the accomplishment of nuclear arsenal, “All-out Concentration Policy for Economic Building” was suggested as a new national strategy. Confronting the economic sanction and the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korea came forth with “Five-year Economic Development Plan” admitting the failure of the previous economic strategy. Nonetheless, the general situation is unfavorable to North Korea in spite of its strong drive to the new economic development plan. In the sake of soothing the current difficult situation and becoming a normal state, North Korea has to consider enhancing credibility with South Korea and improving relations with the United States.

Discursive construction of social selfhood: an analysis of North Korean elementary moral education textbooks

ABSTRACT This study critically analyzes North Korean elementary moral education textbooks published under the Kim Jong-un regime to understand how identities and power are enacted through school curricula. In order to interpret North Korean elementary moral education textbooks, the study reviews a brief history of compulsory moral education in East Asia in the context of Korean ethnonationalism. Three main themes emerge regarding the construction of North Korean sense of self, namely ‘fabricating ethnic homogeneity’, ‘correct attitude towards a new supreme leader’, and a ‘formally systemized mode of living’. Such findings uncover that the state’s institutionalized manufacturing of regime adherence begins at an early age and meticulously shapes individuals’ world views. The implications of the politics of monocultural, ethnonational identity formation are discussed.

金正恩体制下の北朝鮮経済―「改革・市場経済化・制裁」―

金正恩体制下の北朝鮮経済―「改革・市場経済化・制裁」―

김정은 시기 북한 핵 담론의 지속과 변화: 네트워크 분석과 내용 분석의 병행

본 연구의 목적은 북한이 형성하고 있는 핵 담론(nuclear discourse)을 분석하고, 핵과 관련된 북한의 정책적 입장 변화를 추적하는 데 있다. 북한의 핵 담론을 분석하기 위해 조선중앙통신의 기사를 분석대상으로 선정하여 단어 네트워크 분석과 프레임 분석을 통해 핵 담론을 살펴봤다. 단어 네트워크 분석결과, 대화 국면 이전의 핵담론에서 한국과 미국을 언급할 경우 괴뢰, 도발, 전쟁, 핵 전쟁, 위협 등의 부정적이면서 군사대결을 의미하는 단어들이 함께 사용됨을 확인할 수 있었다. 대화 국면 이후의 핵 담론에서도 여전히 군사대결을 의미하는 단어가 자주 등장하였으나 미국을 언급할 때는 긍정적인 단어를 함께 사용함으로써 대화 국면 이전과 대비되는 차이점을 보이고 있었다. 또한, 보다 세부적인 핵 담론을 살펴보기 위해 프레임 분석을 진행한 결과, 대화 국면 이전에 북한은 미국의 핵 위협에 대응하기 위한 자신들의 핵 개발 불가피성을 강조하였으며, 대화국면 이후에도 북한의 핵 담론은 큰 변화가 없었다. 특히, 남북회담, 북미회담을 통한 비핵화 협상이 어려워질수록 과거의 논리를 답습하는 모습을 보여주고 있었다.

Military and Economic Power Networks, Hedging, and Cooperation on the Korean Peninsula

Is the Kim Jong-un regime genuinely pursuing a peaceful solution, to eventually give up its nuclear arsenal, after a series of summits and negotiations with the US and South Korea? We examine how military and economic power networks on the peninsula are associated with the prospect of North Korea’s denuclearization. North Korea could use its nuclear weapons program, an internal tool designed to promote national security and power, to build up power in both military and economic power networks. Drawing lessons and speculation from the literature on states’ hedging behavior, and using agent-based models, we explain that denuclearization as part of a hedging strategy would be a viable policy option for North Korea.

북한 문헌에서 경관의 시각적 서술 경향 연구

This paper interprets the social and cultural significance of the “landscape” in North Korea by exploring the object and context of the text referring to the “landscape” in North Korean literature. To this end, the paper first classified the objects describing “landscapes” in serial publications and newspaper articles by types and grouped them according to trend. As a result, the social and cultural significance of the "landscape" in North Korea can be divided among “Projection Object of Orthodoxy", "Visuality extended to the City" and "Visible Socialist-Fairyland". First, in an article about Baekdusan (Mt. Baekdu), “landscape” was used as a medium to prove the legitimacy of the successor. Next, in the Kim Jong-Un regime, “landscape” was used as a word to describe the visual interactions by human economic activities. Finally, as a way to visualize the achievements in the landscape sector, a term for ranking landscapes such as “Socialist-Fairyland” was adopted during Kim Jong-Un

СУЧАСНЕ ОПЕРАЦІЙНЕ СЕРЕДОВИЩЕ В КОНТЕКСТІ ЗАГРОЗИ ЗАСТОСУВАННЯ ХІМІЧНОЇ, БІОЛОГІЧНОЇ, РАДІОЛОГІЧНОЇ І ЯДЕРНОЇ ЗБРОЇ МАСОВОГО ЗНИЩЕННЯ

In the current context, the most prominent menace to global security prevails, the same it was 50 years ago, the feasibility of using the nuclear arsenal. This arsenal continues to be renewed, incorporating increasingly advanced technologies and state-of-the-art vectors capable of transporting these means at very high speeds and almost unlimited distances.A significant feature of modern military conflicts is the multidimensional nature, specific to hybrid warfare. Unconventional hybrid threats should also consider the possible use of chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons of mass destruction (CBRN WMD) and the generation of destruction or sabotage incidents, which may result in contamination with toxic industrial materials (TIMs).The current operational environment appears crystallized in a new, more refined, and sophisticated form of the Cold War, with two major classical strategic blocs, namely NATO and partner countries, on the one hand, and the Russian Federation as the opposite pole. The two great actors are not the only constituent elements of the current geostrategic ensemble. Added to this are the conflict in Syria, tensions in Israel and Palestine, the complicated US-Iran relationship over the last state's nuclear program, the volatility of the Kim Jong-un regime in North Korea and, last but not least, the rise of China and India as economic and military superpowers. In this study, we will detail the basics of international law in the possession, production, and use of CBRN agents, the declared arsenals of weapons of mass destruction of main world actors, and how CBRN agents had been used in recent conflicts.

북한 김정은 정권의 엘리트 특성 : 중국과의 비교를 중심으로

북한 김정은 정권의 엘리트 특성 : 중국과의 비교를 중심으로

김정은 시대 관광산업의 국제화전략과 협력의 선택적 이중구조

김정은 정권에 들어 대북제재에 맞선 ‘관광의 붐’은 북한 관광산업에서의 새로운 변화를 의미한다. 특히 관광 상품의 특성화, 관광통제정책의 유연성, 관광개발과 관광협력대상(국가, 여행사)의 확대, 선진국형의 관광전문기구 확충 및 인력양성, 등이 주목된다. 북한 관광정책의 변화에 담긴 의미는 세 가지다. 첫째, ‘경제개발 선봉대(The Vanguard of Economic Development)’로서의 신산업에 대한 김정은의 절박한 의지가 있다. 이는 관광산업의 국제화이다. 둘째, 대북제재로 인한 대외무역시장의 축소, 경제개발지대들에 대한 외자유치 실패, 등을 관광산업을 통해 견인하려는 전략이다. 셋째, 관광협력에 있어 공식적인 정부차원보다는 직간접적인 민간차원(개인, 기업, 단체, 등)을 더 선호하는 편이다. 이에 따라 사회주의-자본주의의 아우르는 100여개 이상의 여행사들이 참여한다. 결국 남북관광협력에 있어서 가장 큰 딜레마는 여전히 북한의 선택에 따른 북 · 중협력과 남북협력의 선택적 이중구조이다. 이러한 선택적 이중구조의 배경에는 북중관계와 남북관계 사이에서 북핵문제와 대외관계의 변동에 따른 지정학적배경이 있다.

Changes in North Korea’s higher education and education management system during the Kim Jong Un Era

ABSTRACT This study aimed to review changes in North Korea’s education system during the Kim Jong-un era to determine if North Korea has focused on higher education and obtained the educational goals set in the Kim Jung-il era. To do so, this paper examines how North Korea’s education laws and educational content have influenced its central educational administration system from the Kim Il-sung to the Kim Jong-un regime. This study also explores specific changes in North Korea’s higher education system. For the analysis, I reviewed a variety of documents and media content, such as policies announced by the North Korean media, statute books, textbooks, magazines, and interviews with North Korean defectors regarding educational changes. Results indicate that North Korea’s educational system was reformed only after the reform of its administrative system. Additionally, the results demonstrate that North Korean education has shifted from basic, theoretical education to practical education during the Kim Jong-un regime. This study concludes that higher education in North Korea will continue to be reinforced for everyone so it can build an advanced nation.