'North Korea hasn't changed': High profile defector on world's most secretive nation

From assassinations to illegal drugs-lab, a senior military officer from North Korea recently opened up about the most secretive nation under Kim Jong-un’s leadership. In an exclusive interview with BBC, Kim Kuk-song said that he spent 30 years working his way to the top ranks of North Korea’s powerful spy agencies, which were the “eyes, ears and brains of the Supreme Leader”. Kuk-song claimed he kept the administration’s secrets, sent assassins to kill their critics and even built an illegal drugs lab to help raise “revolutionary funds”. 

Kuk-song had fled North Korea in 2014 and since then he has been living in Seoul and working with South Korean intelligence. While speaking to the British media outlet, he said North Korean leadership is desperate to make cash by any means possible. He even revealed the strategy behind the decision being made in Pyongyang and the regime’s attack on South Korea. He claimed that North Korea’s spy and cyber networks can reach across the globe. 

North Korea's 'terror task force'

The former senior official’s last few years in North Korea offer some insight into the early career of Kim Jong-un. Kuk-song painted a picture of a young man who was eager to prove himself as a “warrior”. He revealed that the secretive nation formed a new spy agency called the Reconnaissance General Bureau in 2009 and made Kim Yong-chol, Kim Jong-un’s most trusted aides, the Chief of the bureau. The same year, Kuk-song said that an order came down the chain of command to form a “terror task force” to kill a former North Korean official who had defected to the South. 

Kuk-song said that Kim Jong-un had formed the task force to satisfy the then supreme leader (his father). He said that the ‘Terror Force’ was formed to assassinate Hwang Jang-yop in secret. Jang-yop was once one of the country’s most powerful officials and he had been a key architect of North Korean policy. Once he defected to South Korea, he was extremely critical of the regime. 

In a revenge move, the Kim family then ordered to assassinate the official. However, the assassination attempt went wrong, said Kuk-song. He said that two North Korean army majors are still serving prison sentences in Seoul for the plot and North Korea, on the other hand, has denied any involvement. Kuk-song said that in North Korea, terrorism is a “political tool” that protects the highest dignity of Kim Jong-un. “It was a gift to demonstrate the successor’s loyalty to his great leader,” he added. 

NKorean agents still 'active' in South Korea 

Further, Kuk-song said that one of his responsibilities under Kim’s administration was developing strategies to deal with South Korea. He said that the aim was “political subordination”. He also claimed that there were “many cases” where he directed spies to go to the South and perform operative missions through them. 

Kuk-song revealed that a North Korean agent worked at the Presidential Office in South Korea and returned to North safely, after which he worked at the 314 Liaison Office of the Labor Party. Kuk-song said that North Korean operatives are still playing an “active role” in the various civil organisations as well as important institutions in South Korea. 

Pyongyang's 'revolutionary funds'

While speaking about the illegal drugs lab, Kuk-song said that under the former supreme leader Kim Jong-il’s administration, he was placed in the Operations Departments and was ordered to raise “revolutionary funds”, meaning dealing in illegal activities. Kuk-song said that during the assigned task, he brought three foreigners from abroad into North Korea, built a production base in the training centre and produced drugs. He added that the drug money belonged to the North Korean leader, with which he build villas, buy cars, buy food, get clothes and enjoy luxuries. 

Another source of income, according to Kuk-song, came from illegal weapons sales to Iran. He revealed that there were special midget-submarines, semi-submersibles involved. He claimed that the deals were so successful that North’s deputy director in Iran would boost about summoning the Iranians to his swimming pool to do business. Moreover, he said that North Korea also sold weapons and technology to countries fighting long civil wars. 

Kuk-song lived a privileged life in North Korea. He said that he was allowed to travel abroad freely to raise money for the secretive nation. He revealed that he sold rare metals and coal to raise millions in cash. 

North remains unchanged

In 2011, the former North Korean official said that when Kim Jong-un ascended to the political throne, he decided to purge those perceived as a threat. During that time there had long been suggestions that Kim’s uncle Jang Song-thaek was the de-facto leader of North Korea, as Kim Jong-il's health faded. However, in 2013, the North Korean media announced that Jang has been executed. 

This is when Kuk-song realised that he can no longer exist in North Korea. He decided to make a plan to flee with his family to South Korea. He said that abandoning his country was the “worst grief-stricken decision of emotional distress”. However, he added that speaking about the secretive nation is the only duty he can do to help free his Northern brethren from the grasps of dictatorship. He concluded the BBC interview by saying that it has been years since he moved to the South, but North Korea still remains unchanged. “The strategy we set up continues. What you need to know is that North Korea hasn't changed 0.01%,” Kuk-song added. 

(Image: AP)