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North Korea: Kim Jong Un provokes the USA with the "most powerful weapon in the world"

2021-01-15T16:11:11.929Z


Shortly before the presidential change in the US, Kim Jong Un is bragging about new missiles. But he also admits a mistake - and at least sends an encouraging sign.


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North Korean military parade on January 14: the USA as "greatest enemy"

Photo: - / AFP

The martial debut took place after nightfall.

Dictator Kim Jong Un, in a leather coat and fur hat, waved brightly from the stands, and his subjects waved red flags all around.

Little by little, at least four new black and white missiles rolled over Kim Il Sung Square in the North Korean capital Pyongyang.

According to the inscriptions, they were ballistic missiles of the "Pukguksong 5" type.

State media later described the novelty as "the most powerful weapon in the world".

New types of short-range missiles were also on display.

They can supposedly run on solid fuel - this saves costs and increases reliability in an emergency.

Hypersonic weapons and nuclear submarines announced

The military parade on Thursday sent a high-pitched signal to the USA, especially to the next President, Joe Biden.

Shortly before, at the Labor Party conference, Kim had already described the Western superpower as "our greatest enemy."

He listed in detail the new types of weapons that were then presented to the public.

He also announced plans to develop hypersonic weapons, military reconnaissance satellites and nuclear submarines.

The building of a nuclear force is the "strategic and outstanding goal" of his nation.

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Military parade in Pyongyang on January 14th: Allegedly "the most powerful weapon in the world"

Photo: KCNA / EPA-EFE / Shutterstock

The party congress was staged as a demonstration of strength.

Such a mass event is a rarity these days worldwide.

Over 7,000 delegates, close together, all without a mask, cheered with full throats.

It was the first party conference in five years, the eighth in the history of the Stalinist country.

At the end of the spectacle, the dictator presented himself more powerful than ever.

He now adorns himself with the title of "General Secretary" - just like his father Kim Jong Il, who died nine years ago, and his grandfather, the legendary state founder Kim Il Sung.

Officially, there are no corona cases in North Korea

But the glamorous impression of the latest gun show is deceptive.

In fact, Kim's 25 million state is in a "serious economic crisis," says Tomoki Iimura, a North Korea researcher at the Japan Institute of International Affairs in Tokyo.

Officially, there are no cases of corona infections in North Korea, but the regime's fear of the virus and its consequences is already visible at the country's borders.

North Korea has been hermetically sealing itself off for around a year, even from China, the most important economic partner and supporter.

The fact that Kim called thousands of comrades to Pyongyang shows how nervous the regime is about the economic crisis.

According to experts, the discontent even among the North Korean elite is going too deep.

The dictator therefore apparently felt it was imperative to demonstrate demonstratively to swear allegiance to the regime.

In his long speech, he made an admission that is most unusual for a ruler with supposedly godlike abilities: he admitted that his most recent five-year economic plan had failed.

As a justification, Kim referred to the global corona crisis, the devastating floods last summer and the international sanctions against the country.

The nuclear trump card remains all Kim can show

The deeper reason for North Korea's crisis is homemade: "The past five years have confirmed that economic growth and the nuclear program are incompatible," says Iimura.

The nuclear trump card remains all Kim can show.

On them he now bases his rule and the survival of the dynasty even more.

Kim is responsible for four of the six North Korean nuclear tests so far;

as early as 2017 he announced the breakthrough to become a nuclear power.

Kim also owes the fact that Kim was able to consistently expand his nuclear threat potential to the outgoing US President Donald Trump.

With two pompous summits and a visit to the demilitarized zone, Trump gave the dictator that diplomatic appreciation that his predecessors could only dream of.

Surely it made sense that Washington should talk to Pyongyang again.

And with his "fire and anger" tirade Trump himself had previously contributed to the Korean peninsula coming to the brink of war.

But then the man in the White House turned all too enthusiastic and naive on a cuddle course.

At the first summit with Kim in Singapore in 2018, he created the illusion that he could buy Kim's nuclear program through a kind of deal.

All that remained of Trump's alleged successes were beautiful television pictures.

Trump invoked statesmanlike "love"

At the latest with the failed summit in Hanoi in February 2019, it became clear that Trump had neither the necessary patience nor a well thought-out strategy to wrest substantial concessions from Kim.

In the end, the US President repeatedly invoked statesmanlike "love" between himself and the dictator, who wrote him flattering letters.

But Trump had obviously lost interest in North Korea and its nuclear weapons.

Kim is now returning to the political starting point of the eternal nuclear dispute: "Regardless of who has power in the USA, the true character of the USA and its fundamental policy towards North Korea never changes," he said at the party congress.

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Kim Jong Un takes down the military parade: Concern about the discontent in the country

Photo: KCNA / EPA-EFE / Shutterstock

With his arms parade, Kim has now confirmed that he does not think of ever giving up the status of a nuclear power again.

Kim used the phase of détente that Trump let by to further arm himself.

It is estimated that North Korea has between 20 and 60 nuclear warheads.

Kim's goal is likely to be: He wants to develop nuclear missiles whose range covers the American capital.

The new President Biden takes on a thankless legacy.

"The threshold for future negotiations with the North is now much higher," says Koh Yu-hwan, President of the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul, who also advises South Korean President Moon Jae-In.

In Koh's assessment, Biden cannot simply revert to Obama-era politics on Pyongyang.

Back then, the US government largely punished the Kim regime with neglect.

This policy was called "strategic patience", but it did not prevent the dictator from rearming.

Expert Koh warns: the more time goes by, the more difficult it will be to negotiate nuclear disarmament with North Korea in the future.

He expects Biden to build on the positive aspects of Trump's Singapore summit.

Biden could catch up on what Trump failed to do and negotiate individual disarmament steps with Kim.

In return, the US would have to make concrete concessions to meet the north.

more on the subject

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  • Icon: Spiegel Plus Kim Jong Un and his new social media strategy: Living in North Korea?

    An interview by Katharina Graça Peters

  • Icon: Spiegel PlusFamily fate in divided Korea: "How can I let go when I know my brother is alive?" By Katharina Graça Peters, Seoul

  • North Korea: Dictator Kim Jong Un consolidates his power at the top of the party

It is uncertain whether and when there will be new talks.

During the election campaign, Biden called the dictator a "criminal".

As an encouraging sign, Koh sees that Biden has not yet committed to a North Korean policy.

In contrast to Trump, the successor also prefers a foreign policy that relies on multilateral negotiations - as was the case in the so-called six-party talks between the USA, China, Russia, Japan and the two Koreas.

However, Biden finds a geopolitical situation in East Asia that is much more explosive than at the beginning of the Trump era.

Relations between the US and China have been shattered by the bilateral trade war, Chinese expansion in the South China Sea, the suppression of Hong Kong and the threat to Taiwan.

But without backing from China, no lasting peace can be created on the Korean peninsula.

Kim hasn't ruled out negotiations with the US

In any case, the clammy dictator Kim should continue to draw attention to himself and his weapons.

It is possible that Kim will send further messages to the Biden government to test their reaction, says expert Iimura in Tokyo.

Presumably, however, there will only be limited provocations, such as testing rocket propulsion systems or launching short-range missiles.

"I don't think North Korea will suddenly fire an ICBM."

After all, Kim has not ruled out future negotiations with the US.

This fact alone can be seen as an encouraging sign.

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Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2021-01-15

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