In his first interview since defecting south more than a year ago, Ryu Hyeon-woo told CNN that “North Korea’s nuclear power is directly linked to the stability of the regime” – and Kim likely believes that nuclear weapons are are key to its survival. .
Ryu also said previous US governments had cornered themselves by demanding pre-denuclearization in negotiations with the totalitarian state.
“The US cannot shy away from denuclearization and Kim Jong Un cannot denuclearize,” he added.
Ryu and his family have defected to South Korea in September 2019, but their actions were only made public last week. Determined to give their teenage daughter a better life, Ryu said he and his wife planned their escape for about a month while living in Kuwait.
Ryu said had they been caught, North Korean agents would have quickly returned them all to Pyongyang for some punishment, as defection is considered a great shame to the Kim regime and not taken lightly.
Finally, they told their daughter about the plan while pretending to take her to school.
“Come with Mom and Dad to find freedom,” Ryu recalled to his daughter. “She was shocked and then said, ‘Okay.’ That’s all she said. ‘
Ryu took his family to the South Korean embassy in Kuwait to apply for asylum. A few days later they traveled to South Korea.
Dismissal from North Korea comes at a huge cost, requiring defectors to immediately cut ties with any family left behind in their own country.
The regime often punishes nuclear and extended families of defectors to keep people from leaving, Ryu said – especially diplomats. Those sent abroad are often forced to leave a child at home as a hostage so that their parents do not defect.
“I hate that North Korea has such a feudal collective family punishment in the 21st century,” said Ryu.
He is now concerned about his three siblings and his 83-year-old mother who are still in North Korea. “I just want to see them live long,” Ryu said. “Any thought of being punished for what I’ve done just hurts my heart.”
He is also concerned about his wife’s elderly parents living in Pyongyang.
North Korea has long been accused of using its embassies as cash cows for the ruling Kim family. Ryu said that while he was a trained diplomat engaged in politics, there were also “economic trade workers” assigned to diplomatic posts. They were given a quota for the amount they had to earn for the state, Ryu added.
Ryu said that only China and Russia made more money for North Korean workers’ regime than the Gulf states of Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE – at least until 2017, when the United Nations punished Pyongyang for its repeated missile and nuclear tests. hiring its employees.
“Most workers in the Gulf region have left thanks to the UN resolution,” he said.
Ryu was also transferred to Syria, a close ally of North Korea, from 2010 to 2013. While Ryu was tasked with overseeing relations with Syrian politicians, his countrymen sold conventional weapons to the Bashar al-Assad regime, including multiple weapons. long range launchers. artillery and anti-aircraft weapon systems. However, Ryu said the country’s bloody civil war forced Pyongyang to pull its personnel out of the country. He said he had not heard of any new arms deals with the Syrians since leaving the country.
Ryu’s experience in the Middle East gave him a close-up view of how the United States dealt with Iran’s nuclear program during the administration of former President Barack Obama. He believes experience will come in handy for US President Joe Biden.
“Based on his experience in resolving the Iranian nuclear issue, I have no doubt that he will be able to wisely address North Korea’s nuclear issue,” said Ryu.
Ryu said he believed North Korea would be willing to negotiate a reduction in its nuclear weapons, but is unlikely to ever give them up altogether. However, he said sanctions may have played a role in pushing North Korea to the negotiating table in 2018, when Kim and former US President Donald Trump met for their historic summit in Singapore.
Many analysts believe that Kim came to the negotiating table because he had already developed nuclear weapons and successfully tested a long-range missile that could reach the territory of the United States.
“The current sanctions against North Korea are unprecedented and powerful,” said Ryu. “I think sanctions against North Korea should be continued.”
Ryu also said it is important not to give up on the issue of human rights, which has been largely swept under the rug during nuclear talks with the Trump administration.
Pyongyang claims to be a socialist paradise and denies allegations of gross human rights violations. However, North Korea does not allow freedom of expression or assembly, and citizens cannot leave. Kim’s regime has been accused of running a system of gulags and political prison camps housing more than 120,000 men, women and children.
“Human rights are a matter of morality, and in the North Korean regime the human rights issue is a sensitive and serious issue,” said Ryu.
Looking back over the past 16 months, Ryu says his only regret is what could happen to his remaining relatives in Pyongyang. He and his wife believe they have done the right thing for their daughter by moving her away from her home country.
Ryu told CNN that he asked his daughter what she liked most about her new home. “I like that I can use the Internet as often as I want,” she replied.