This is the same thing I have been saying for years that the North Koreans want a peace treaty in order to separate the US from the ROK. As long as the US-ROK alliance is solid Kim knows he has no chance of reunification with the ROK on his terms:
“What does Kim Jong-un want?” Cha said repeating the question. “I think he wants to … he wants a peace treaty with the United States as a nuclear weapons state. I think that’s what he wants.”
“I would add to that, that the North Koreans clearly would like to loosen, if not fracture, US alliances with Seoul and Tokyo, beginning with Seoul, certainly,” said Ambassador Robert Gallucci, the lead negotiator with North Korea in the 1990s in the Agreed Framework process.
“And they will do a lot to achieve that, and including, perhaps, enter negotiations,” Gallucci noted. [Business Insider]
In this image captured from video footage of North Korea’s Korean Central Television on Jan. 18, 2017, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un walks with a limp during a visit to a children’s camp in Kangwon Province. In 2014, Kim was reported to have received an operation to remove a cyst from his right ankle. The recent video footage, released the previous day, raises speculation that his condition has recurred. (Yonhap)
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sits on the bed during a visit to a silk factory in Pyongyang, his second public outing of the year, in this photo taken from the North’s Central TV Broadcasting Station on Jan. 8, 2017. (Yonhap)
Take it for what is worth, but unidentified sources are saying that US Special Operations Forces would participate in an operation to kill Kim Jong-un in case of conflict:
The South Korean Army is engaged in a special infiltration exercise in the East Sea on Aug. 6, 2016. (Yonhap)
– U.S. special operation forces are expected to participate in a South Korean-led operation to kill North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un in the event of war, according to military sources Sunday.
“The South Korean military will form a special brigade based on that of the U.S. sometime later this year,” said a high-ranking government official on the condition of anonymity, adding that U.S. special agents are expected to be under Korean command during the operation.
“Although the brigade is modeled after that in the U.S., it will be tailored to the special environments of the peninsula,” he said.
The 1,000-2,000-strong unit is tasked with eliminating Pyongyang’s wartime command, including Kim Jong-un, and paralyzing its functions. [Yonhap]
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspects a newly built bag factory in Pyongyang, his first public outing of the new year, in this photo released by the North’s ruling party organ Rodong Sinmun on Jan. 5, 2017. The plant is capable of producing over 242,000 school bags and 60,000 ordinary bags a year, according to the paper. (Yonhap)
N.K. leader Kim Jong-un (4th from L) attends an art performance in Pyongyang for the participants of the conference of chairpersons of ruling party primary committees in this photo published by the North’s Korean Central News Agency on Dec. 29, 2016. It was Kim’s first appearance in 14 months to the performance by the Moranbong Band, an all girl band that he founded, who shared the stage with the State Merited Chorus. The Moranbong Band has been a source of interest for its lack for visibility, its last reported performance being in May this year. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
These photos from the North’s Korean Central News Agency on Dec. 15, 2016, shows the country’s top leader Kim Jong-un visiting a military fish farm. Kim was reported to have visited other military “fish stations” twice last month, such visits accompanied by remarks that they have exceeded their goals for this year’s catch. (Yonhap)
I am always careful to caveat these type of stories coming out of North Korea because there is no way to confirm whether they are true or not. They could just be a random rumor that a newspaper editor saw an opportunity for a sensational headline to publish:
Kim Jong Un got drunk and ordered military leaders to write statements about their failures while visiting his summer villa, according to a Japanese press report published Tuesday. The punishment also required the military veterans to write an apology.
“That none of you were able to produce not even one military satellite is a misconduct that is commensurate to treason,” Kim allegedly told senior officials at the time. The veterans were required to stay up all night writing the letters, but when Kim found them in the morning, he was allegedly confused about why there were gathered at his vacation home. “Why are you gathered here?” Kim allegedly said, before adding: “Be careful about your health because you are all old.”
These photos from North Korea’s daily Rodong Sinmun on Dec. 13, 2016, features the country’s top leader Kim Jong-un visiting the Wonsan Army-People Power Station in southeastern Kangwon Province. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
