North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has made a surprise visit to China only three months after a similar trip in May. Nothing had been known of Kim’s China trip beforehand, and his travel route was different from the previous one. Early on the morning of August 26, Kim crossed the border from Manpo in the North’s Jagang Province and arrived in Jilin City in China by way of Jian. Kim did not choose his ordinary route to China, from Sinuiju in North Pyongan Province to Dandong in China’s Liaoning Province. In Jilin, Kim first visited Yuwen Middle School, which his father, North Korean founder Kim Il-sung, attended. Kim also toured Beishan Park, which North Korea commemorates as a holy place for Kim Il-sung’s anti-Japanese movement, and the People’s Square. He also inspected industrial facilities in Jilin, including the Huaxin chemical fiber factory. Cha Du-hyeon, researcher at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, explains the North Korean leader’s latest China trip has several purposes.

North Korea is scheduled to hold a delegates’ conference of the Workers’ Party in September. Kim Jong-il’s China visit has the purpose of hosting the meeting successfully and asking China to provide economic and even political support, if possible, which is needed for facilitating the North’s power succession. Both North Korea and China have sought their own exit strategies for the Cheonan issue since July. The two communist allies may have coordinated their respective strategies during Kim’s visit to China.

Meanwhile, attention has turned to whether or not Kim Jong-il was accompanied by his son and heir apparent Kim Jong-un on the trip. The Chinese government explained that Kim junior was not on the list of invited guests. Some speculate the explanation means the younger Kim was not simply on the official roster of the guest list, and even indicates the possibility of the son’s presence on the same trip. But Mr. Cha has a different opinion.

Some say Kim Jong-un already assumes a high position within the North’s Workers’ Party, but the claim hasn’t been confirmed yet, even in China. Kim junior may have accompanied his father in a private capacity. In light of current North Korea-China relations, however, I don’t think he came with his father to join such an important diplomatic event as an official successor, or with the purpose of getting China’s approval for a father-to-son power succession, as some speculate. The assumption also runs counter to the North’s official state ideology “Juche” or self-reliance. I think the possibility of Jong-un’s accompanying his father is rather low.

The matter of the utmost concern was, of course, whether the North Korean leader held a summit with Chinese President Hu Jintao. As was common practice in Kim Jong-il’s previous trips to China, the Chinese media neither confirmed nor denied Kim’s visit during his trip. It was not until August 30 that the media confirmed Kim’s China visit and the summit between Kim and Hu. China’s state-run CCTV reported that the two leaders held a summit and stressed the maintenance of a close bilateral relationship. In regards to the North Korean nuclear issue, the report said the Chinese president underlined the need for the swift resumption of the six-party talks and the North Korean leader, too, expressed hope to resume the talks at an early date. Judging from the circumstances, some predict that the stalled six-party talks may gain traction following Kim’s China trip. Here’s Yonhap New Agency reporter Jang Yong-hun.

China’s efforts to prepare for the six-party talks will become more visible down the road. In fact, the six-party talks and a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula were common topics in previous North Korea-China summits. But I imagine North Korea and China will be more committed to reopening the six-party talks, considering that North Korea finds it increasingly necessary to manage regional diplomacy on a more stable basis while building the structure of a power transition.

Meanwhile, economic cooperation between North Korea and China is expected to enter a new phase after Kim Jong-il’s China visit. Kim and Hu reportedly reached a rough agreement on linking China’s development of the Changchun-Jilin-Tumen River, or Changjitu, zone with a plan to develop the northeastern region in North Korea. According to a diplomatic source in Beijing, Kim asked Hu to expand China’s investment in the North’s northeastern area, while Hu expressed his opinion about linking the Changjitu development plan with the development of North Korea’s northeastern Rason special economic zone, stressing the need for North Korea’s reform and openness. Some experts suggest the latest Kim-Hu summit has further strengthened solidarity between the two countries. There are concerns that the close connection between Beijing and Pyongyang may lead to confrontation between two forces, namely, South Korea and the U.S. versus North Korea and China. But Mr. Cha says that this development rather implies greater flexibility in changing the diplomatic situation in the region.

On the one hand, Beijing sent its chief nuclear envoy Wu Dawei to Seoul, but on the other it accepted the North Korea leader’s visit, reflecting a shift in its strategy toward seeking diverse dialogue channels. We generally have the impression that China sided with North Korea in the course of handling the Cheonan incident. But China did agree to the U.N. Security Council’s presidential statement condemning the attack on the Cheonan. The move indicates China is refraining from adopting an extremely one-sided policy when dealing with North and South Korea. In a similar context, China maintains operating dialogue channels with South Korea and the U.S., while actively trying to lead the process of the prompt resumption of the six-party talks. Involved countries will likely engage in full discussions about resuming dialogue after September. To prepare for this, South Korea must draft its own policy in advance.

Following Kim Jong-il’s China visit, attention is being drawn to how involved countries will react on the potential for the resumption of the six-party nuclear talks. Now is time to ponder the most effective measures to bring peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.



[Interview] Korean American College Students Engage in Volunteer Work for N. Korean Defectors A group of ethnic Koreans in the U.S. have recently visited South Korea to engage in some volunteer work for North Korean defectors. Nine undergraduates and graduates from Wesley College and Boston College participated in a volunteer program organized by Gyeonggi Province and the Unification Ministry from August 9 through 24. Two participants, Kim Gyeong-min and O Ye-jin, both from Wesley College, tell us why they decided to take part in the program.

...When I was a sophomore, I stayed at home in Atlanta for a while for an internship program. At the time, my parents happened to meet two female North Korean defectors who came to the U.S. from Shanghai with the help of the U.N. I stayed with them for three months in that summer. They told me about the severe human rights violations in North Korea, which I couldn’t even imagine. It came to me that I should do something. When returning to school, I started club activities associated with the North Korean human rights issue with my friends. The club made contact with the Unification Ministry in South Korea, and that was why I came here.

...When I attended a lecture of American human rights activist Suzanne Scholte, I was impressed and felt heavy at the same time. I thought I could do something good if I participate in a similar work. My grandfather came from North Korea, and my mom has always been interested in North Korea-related issues. I’ve been conscious of that since I was little.

Before starting the volunteer work, the Korean Americans participated in a camp program together with 40 South Korean college students and defector students from North Korea. Divided into four different groups, the participants toured the Imjin Pavilion near the inter-Korean border, the truce village of Panmunjeom, the Demilitarized Zone and the No. 3 underground tunnel built by North Korea in an attempt to reach Seoul. It was a hands-on experience of the reality of Korea’s division, which they had only heard about before. The two students, Kim and O, say the camp program greatly changed their perceptions about unification and North Korean defectors.

...As a Korean American, I simply thought that unification or the North Korean human rights issue would be resolved easily anyway, even though they were complicated problems. But after visiting South Korea and talking with many people here, I realized these problems weren’t easy at all and I had been so ignorant of the reality. I thought I should learn more and work harder.

...I talked with many North Korean defectors here. For me, it was a whole new experience to directly meet them. The newcomers have their own dreams and enthusiasm as well. They escaped North Korea in search of freedom and went through various hardships. We have a lot to learn from them.

After completing the camp program, the Korean American students took part in the volunteer work at Hangyeore School and four local resettlement centers for North Korean defectors. At the school for North Korean teenagers, they lived in a dormitory with defector students and taught them English on a one-to-one basis to meet the level of each student.

At the four local resettlement centers, meanwhile, the students met with two or three North Korean defectors each. They talked with senior citizens from North Korea and taught them the English alphabet and basic English expressions used for filling out the passport application. Mingling with North Korean defectors in South Korea, the overseas ethnic Koreans came to realize that they shared much in common with the North Koreans. The two students now express their hopes.

...It was a much greater experience than I had expected. But I’m leaving the country with a heavy heart, wondering how I can learn more about North Korea, unification and the human rights issue. I hope to work in the field associated with those issues, if given the opportunity.

...When I go back to school and join the club again, I want to let my club members know what I experienced here. I have yet to decide what to do after graduation, but I don’t think I will lose interest in North Korea. I hope to continue to engage in relevant activities.

They had the precious experience of sharing warm feelings with North Korean defectors, though only for a short while. Their heartfelt interest and efforts will surely contribute to creating a solid basis for the future reunification of Korea.