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Kim Jong-un’s nephew ‘under guard’ in France

The nephew of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has reportedly been placed under police guard in France, where he is currently studying, amid fears he may be targeted by the regime. He has previously slated his uncle in TV interviews.

Published: 18 December 2013 10:05 CET

Kim Jong-un's nephew 'under guard' in France

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un (left) and his nephew Kim Han-sol (right) who is studying in France. Photos: AFP/ Processedturkey_youtube

Concerns were raised after Kim-Jong-un’s uncle, believed to be the second most powerful man in the North Korean regime, was executed earlier this month along with several of his allies.

There are now fears that other members of the family could also be purged and French police are taking no chances with Kim Jong-un’s nephew.

Kim Han-sol, is currently in his first year degree at the prestigious Sciences-Po college, at its centre in Le Havre, northern France.

According to South Korean media Kim Han-sol returned to his dormitory at his student halls of residence accompanied by French police officers, who warned photographers not to take pictures.

Additional police have been drafted in to patrol the campus, the UK’s Daily Telegraph reported.

Kim Han-sol is the son of the disgraced Kim Jong-nam, the eldest son and original successor to the former dictator Kim Jong-il.

However Kim Jong-nam was unceremoniously removed from the line of succession because of his party antics and in particular his deportation from Japan in 2001 after reportedly entering the country using a fake Dominican Republic passport before being arrested during a visit to Disneyland.

Kim Han-sol’s willingness in the past to publicly criticize the North Korea’s regime, may be the reason why French police are particularly cautious.

According to l’Express, during an interview on Finnish television in 2012, Kim Han-sol criticized North Korea's Pyongyang regime, saying he felt sorry for his compatriots being ruled by a “dictator” – his uncle.

His outspoken nature and modern views might well come from his time spent living in Macao in China, as well as his former studies at an international school in Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Here is the first part of that interview with Finnish TV.

Here is the second part of that interview.

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Trump-Kim summit closer to reality as talks continue in Sweden

North Korean foreign minister Ri Yong-Ho in Stockholm. According to some reports, he will be in Sweden through Sunday. Photo: Vilhelm Stokstad/TT

There was no immediate breakthrough, but North Korea's foreign minister was to remain in Stockholm into Saturday for further talks with Swedish leaders, as the Scandinavian intermediary strives to pave the way for talks that could end a threat of nuclear war.

From Washington, Trump called his South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-in, whose government last week passed an apparent summit invitation to Trump from Kim. Trump accepted on the spot and triggered a race to set a credible agenda for what could be a historic breakthrough.

Rampant skepticism

At the same time, foreign ministers Kang Kyung-wha of South Korea and Taro Kono of Japan were in Washington for talks at an under-staffed US State Department, left in turmoil by Trump's abrupt and brutal Twitter-sacking of former secretary of state Rex Tillerson.

“I think we're cautiously optimistic that the talks will happen and that this will be a breakthrough for a peaceful resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue,” Kang told the PBS NewsHour.

The abrupt decision to accept the summit has triggered much skepticism from Korea observers but, after his call with Moon, Trump's White House remained cautiously optimistic that his strategy of making military threats backed by crippling real-world sanctions had forced Kim's hand.

Trump and Moon “agreed that concrete actions, not words, will be the key to achieving permanent denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, and President Trump reiterated his intention to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un by the end of May,” the White House said. “The two leaders expressed cautious optimism over recent developments and emphasized that a brighter future is available for North Korea, if it chooses the correct path.”

Before a date or a venue for the summit can be set, North Korea will have to publicly confirm that it sent the invitation and intends to honor it, by attending a meeting to discuss giving up its nuclear arsenal.

There had been speculation that Pyongyang might do so Friday, when Ri Yong Ho met Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven and Foreign Minister Margot Wallström, but afterwards Swedish officials said the talks would be extended into Saturday.

Sweden has longstanding ties with North Korea. Its diplomatic mission in Pyongyang, which opened in 1975, was the first Western embassy established in the isolationist country and now represents US, Canadian and Australian diplomatic interests, with Sweden playing a key liaison role.

Ri and Wallström dined at the foreign ministry on Thursday evening, then met again on Friday at Villa Bonnier, a lavish building near the US embassy used by the government for official functions.

“It was a good and constructive atmosphere. We'll see what happens next,” Wallström told reporters after Friday's talks.

“Right now, dialogue is needed and we are pleased to have this meeting. But we are not naive and believe we can solve all of the world's problems. It is up to the parties to now decide on the path forward,” she later added.

Ri made no comment as he left.

Nuclear standoff

“If we can use our contacts in the best way, we will do so,” Wallström said, noting the situation on the Korean peninsula was “of interest to us all.”

Ri's delegation included Choe Kang Il, deputy director general of the foreign ministry's North America section. Some media have reported that Ri, who was stationed at North Korea's embassy in Stockholm from 1985 to 1988, will stay in the Scandinavian country until Sunday, though Swedish officials would not confirm this.

A senior US administration official told AFP: “No US government staff are meeting with the North Koreans in Sweden.”

'Serve as facilitator'

International media have speculated that Sweden could either help set up a summit or be a potential location if a tete-a-tete were to be confirmed. The foreign ministry has refused to comment.

Speaking in Berlin on Friday, Löfven said that if Sweden “can serve as a facilitator to bring about results, then we will of course do that.”

Japanese broadcaster TBS said Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Moon discussed North Korea in a telephone call on Friday. TBS said Abe told Moon he wanted North Korea to not only suspend nuclear and missile testing, but also accept International Atomic Energy Inspectors on its soil.

Kono asked US Vice-President Mike Pence to ensure that the decades-old issue of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea would be raised — along with the nuclear and missile issue — in any summit between Trump and Kim, Kyodo news agency reported.

Some reports have suggested that Japan is less optimistic than its allies in Seoul and Washington that the talks are a good idea, but US officials said talks with both Kono and Kang at the State Department had gone well.

“Both sides agreed that the announcement of a meeting between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is an historic opportunity and that the global maximum pressure campaign is working and must remain in effect,” spokeswoman Heather Nauert said.

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