Kim Jong Nam meets the press

Kim Jong Nam, Kim Jong il’s eldest son (and a “nice” guy I am told), has recently been fairly amenable to speaking to foreign journalists—in English—about developments in the DPRK.  He has largely avoided giving much away except that he is not interested in succeeding his father—who is healthy.

Here is a video interview of KJN at Beijing Capital Airport where he boarded another plane to Macau. (Is Air Koryo flying into Beijing’s new terminal?)

Bradley Martin, author of Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader, reports on KJN’s activities in Bloomberg:

Kim Jong Nam, who was wearing large sunglasses and a knit cap, said he was in Macau, Asia’s largest casino destination, for a “holiday trip.” “I never gamble out here,” he said before climbing into a taxi, with no sign of accompanying bodyguards.

At Beijing’s airport earlier in the day, Kim Jong Nam told Asahi Television that he had “no information” on whether Megumi Yokota, a Japanese national abducted by North Korean agents in 1977, might still be alive.

When asked whether he was interested in succeeding his father as North Korea’s leader, Kim said “I am not interested by the issue, sorry.”

Kim Jong Nam went to boarding school in Switzerland (as did his younger brother Kim Jong Chol).  Aside from English, Korean, and French, I would bet he also speaks some German, Mandarin, and Cantonese.  He was also rumored to be the target of an assassination plot in Austria in 2004.  Since my source with Austrian intelligence has gone dormant, I cannot confirm this. 

Read the full article here:
Kim Jong Il Seems Healthy, Eldest Son Tells Fuji News in Macau
Bloomberg
Bradley Martin and Taku Kato
1/27/2009

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3 Responses to “Kim Jong Nam meets the press”

  1. Gag Halfrunt says:

    Macau is a centre for DPRK foreign trade and financial activities – remember Banco Delta Asia, so Kim Jong Nam might well be going there on official business. It is also said that North Korean intelligence has used Macau as a base for training spies, who would learn Cantonese and adjust to living in a modern Western environment, learning to shop in supermarkets, etc.

  2. Werner says:

    Is Air Koryo flying into Beijing’s new terminal?

    Air Koryo still uses Terminal 2, not the new Terminal 3:

    http://en.bcia.com.cn/flight/infor080710.html