Has North Korea’s Kim Jong Un Been Toppled? -- Gordon G. Chang, Daily Beast
Out of sight for a month, young Kim is supposedly ill. But rumors are swirling he’s been deposed—and North Korea’s second most powerful man now feels confident enough to travel South.
Hwang Pyong So must be feeling pretty good about himself right now. At the latest Supreme People’s Assembly meeting, he was made vice chairman of the National Defense Commission. This was after his promotion to director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army, making him the top political officer in the military. In a country where there is supposed to be no No. 2 official, he is called the second-most powerful figure.
Now he has crossed the border into South Korea on a one-day, short-notice trip, triggering hopes of reconciliation between the arch-rival republics—and heightening speculation about the fate of Kim Jong Un, North Korea’s young supremo, who has not been seen in public since September 3.
Read more ....
My Comment: The sudden visit by North Korea's 2nd in command to South Korea over the weekend was a surprise .... this told me that something was up. Yesterday's border clash between North and South Korean ships was also a surprise (in view of this weekend's visit) .... these North Korean vessels do not stray into South Korean waters unless they are ordered to .... and from my perspective someone gave the order to provoke a clash to undermine Hwang Pyong So's surprise visit to South Korea. I know that these are all conflicting signals, and trying to read on what is happening in North Korea is next to impossible .... but my gut is now telling me that there is a power struggle underway in North Korea .... and the perception is growing that Kim Jong-un has either been demoted and/or deposed.
No comments:
Post a Comment