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Report: KJU Realizes State of NK Economy, Breaks Down on Camera

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Video footage of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un weeping over his country’s hurting economy is circulating in Pyongyang, according to Japan’s Asahi Shimbun newspaper, citing an unnamed defector.

The video reportedly shows Kim standing on the coastline of North Korea, gazing toward the horizon as tears flow down his cheeks.

In the background, “a narrator explains that the North Korean leader is distraught over his inability to radically overhaul the economy to make the reclusive country a vibrant power,” Business Insider reported.

Asahi Shimbun explained that the video may be an attempt to show a different side of the leader in preparation for the possible summit next month to discuss denuclarization with President Donald Trump.


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“This side of the man, considered by many in the West as a despot, could be viewed as an attempt to portray the ‘Dear Leader’ in a more flattering light as North Korea continues to signal its readiness to open up more to the outside world through a dramatic change in its foreign policy,” Asahi Shimbun reported.

The defector said the video surfaced in North Korea in April. At that time, Kim had indicated he was willing to negotiate with Trump, and had already met with then-CIA Director Mike Pompeo.

While Trump pursues diplomatic negotiations with the Korean leader, he has also prioritized enacting tough sanctions on the country’s economy, including pressuring China — North Korea’s biggest trading partner — to participate in the sanctions.

As reported by Business Insider, this video could be a sign of the effectiveness of these sanctions and indicate that Kim is preparing to “cave in to President Donald Trump in negotiations.”

North Korean dictators, including Kim Jong Un and his predecessors, are portrayed in the country as powerful god-like figures.

Thus, as reported by Business Insider, “showing (Kim) crying at his own inability to improve his country’s economics would be a shock” and is possibly “meant to prepare the country for possible changes after the summit with Trump,” the defector explained.

Last week, Trump abruptly called off the planned June 12 summit with Kim, citing “tremendous anger and open hostility” in recent North Korean statements.

North Korea quickly responded, calling Trump’s decision “regrettable” and expressing a desire to go forward with the meeting.

Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan announced the country was willing to sit down with the United States “at any time, at any format” and wished “to give the U.S. time and opportunities” to reconsider, The Associated Press reported.

Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Tuesday said that since Trump’s letter canceling the summit, “the North Koreans have been engaging,” with the U.S. “The United States continues to actively prepare for President Trump’s expected summit with leader Kim in Singapore,” she said in a statement.

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Rebekah Baker is the former deputy managing editor of The Western Journal.
Rebekah Baker is the former deputy managing editor of The Western Journal. She graduated from Grove City College with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. She has written hundreds of articles on topics like the sanctity of life, free speech and freedom of religion.
Education
Bachelor of Arts in Political Science
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Faith




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