Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09SEOUL878
2009-06-03 06:58:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Seoul
Cable title:
SEOUL - MEDIA REACTION
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UNCLAS SEOUL 000878
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR ECON KPAO KMDR KS US
SUBJECT: SEOUL - MEDIA REACTION
EAST ASIA AND PACIFIC: DPRK
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"MUST WE ENDURE A THIRD GENERATION OF THE KIM DYNASTY?
Conservative Chosun Ilbo editorialized (06/03): "Our problem lies in
how to respond to this irrational regime. North Korea is, in the
short term, very likely to stage provocations overseas to solidify
its grip on power. ... For the medium term, the ROKG should review
its North Korea policy. ... The ROKG should explore ways to come up
with a new policy with a right mix of pressure and inducements in
order to rein in this unpredictable and irrational regime. In the
long term, the ROKG should prepare for possible instability in North
Korea which might follow or arise in the process of power transfer
from Kim Jong-il to Kim Jong-un."
"KIM'S FARCICAL SUCCESSION"
Right-of-center JoongAng Ilbo editorialized (06/03): "The obsession
with nuclear arms, missiles and other weapons of mass destruction is
part of a malignant campaign to keep the Kim family in control. Our
North Korean policy should take a completely new direction if the
hereditary succession is confirmed. We can no longer consider North
Korean leadership as a partner in seeking common prosperity and
unification of the Korean Peninsula. Our engagement ... should
strictly focus on aid (to North Korean people) and encouraging them
to bring light and change to the reclusive state."
"NORTH KOREA'S HEREDITARY POWER SUCCESSION"
Conservative Dong-a Ilbo editorialized (06/03): "(North Korean
leader Kim Jong-il's third son) Kim Jong-un's nomination was made
shortly after North Korea's rocket launch and its second nuclear
test. These actions seemed intended to solidify Kim Jong-un's power
base by giving him credit for the saber-rattling that threatens
world peace. When Kim Jong-il was named heir apparent in 1974, the
North had said that he took the lead in seizing the U.S.
intelligence ship Pueblo in 1968 and shooting down a U.S.
reconnaissance plane in 1969. Given this precedent, the communist
country will do anything to fabricate achievements by Kim Jong-un.
... The power transfer will not be easy, however. Power struggles
between Kim Jong-un and his two brothers could arise, and given the
increasing number of North Korean defectors, North Koreans appear to
oppose the hereditary power transfer. It is also unclear whether
the ailing Kim Jong-il can protect his son and help him take power
without problems."
STEPHENS