South Korea sees US by its side regardless of who is in White House

NEW YORK/SEOUL – South Korea’s government is not worried about which candidate wins the US presidential election, since it expects to work with whoever takes the White House to confront the nuclear threat from North Korea, according to a senior official in Seoul.

Vice-Unification Minister Kim Soo-kyung said in an interview with Bloomberg that while it has become far harder for North Koreans to escape the repressive state, there has been a jump in the flow of

elites from the North fleeing Mr Kim Jong Un’s regime and

defecting to South Korea

.

Ahead of the US vote, some South Koreans have been worried about what they see as an omission in the Democratic Party’s platform when it comes to seeking North Korea’s denuclearisation, she said, adding that the alliance between Washington and Seoul is stronger than ever.

“We are not that worried about what happens after the US election,” Ms Kim said on Aug 23, just hours after the Democrats concluded their national convention.

Regardless of the outcome, “we are going to deter North Korea’s threat of nuclear weapons based on the strong alliance between (the) two countries”, she said.

North Korea has refused talks with the US since 2019, after three in-person meetings between Mr Kim and then-President Donald Trump failed to curb Pyongyang’s atomic ambitions.

North Korea then shunned offers from President Joe Biden’s government for talks, while further bolstering its nuclear arsenal to counter what it saw as the “hostile intent” of the US and its political “puppets” in Seoul.

Mr Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida have since taken trilateral cooperation to new levels and enhanced joint training on scenarios such as defending against North Korea’s ballistic missiles and hunting for its submarines.

Earlier in August, Mr Yoon made fresh approaches to North Korea, offering aid, dialogue and a path to unification to Pyongyang. But Mr Kim’s regime has remained silent on the proposal. 

North Korea’s state media has also rebuffed comments Trump made during the Republican National Convention touting his relationship with Mr Kim, saying “we do not care” and warning that its nuclear arsenal stands ready for any US president.

Pyongyang sees US policy towards it as remaining hostile regardless of who is in the White House, according to state media. 

Mr Kim’s regime has also seen far more of its elites defect to South Korea during his 12 years in power compared with that of the rule of his father Kim Jong Il, who ran the state for about 17 years, the Vice-Unification Minister said. 

“The number of these elite group defectors is increasing fast,” she said, adding there were about 10 in 2023 to total around 150 under the current leader. These include diplomats, business executives and students able to leave the country, and who then seek asylum. The most recent case that came to light was the defection of a senior North Korean diplomat based in Cuba. 

The total number of defectors to South Korea has dropped sharply from a peak of 2,914 in 2009 after China and North Korea clamped down on the border and Mr Kim sealed off the country during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Through June, a total of 105 people had defected to South Korea, according to data from the Unification Ministry. 

“This means that there is a high demand for defection, but it is really hard to cross the border because North Korea is tightening control,” the vice-minister said, referring to the typical route of crossing the border into China and seeking passage to a third country. 

“The brokerage fee is skyrocketing because it is almost impossible to cross,” she added.

Mr Kim is also facing a rare test of his rule after

flooding in late July

devastated a north-western area near the border with China, likely leading to numerous casualties. North Korea has been silent on the death toll, instead focusing on imagery of Mr Kim at the forefront of relief efforts.

“We believe that there is critical damage to the North Korean society and the North Korean authorities are much concerned about it,” the vice-minister said. BLOOMBERG