When Kim Jong-il died in 2011, the world held its breath as North Korea entered uncharted waters. No other communist dictatorship in the last century – for that matter no other autocratic state that is not a monarchy – has been able to successfully transfer power to a third generation. Some analysts in Washington and elsewhere raised the possibility of the country collapsing in mere months.
But when that didn’t happen, a new theory arose – would he be the great reformer to lead North Korea to the community of nations? 8 years on, that has not yet happened either.
We still know so little about the North Korean leader – and so much of how we think of Kim Jong-un comes from media portrayals, the parodies, and assumptions amalgamated from our knowledge of other autocrats.
But a new book provides the first comprehensive and readable study of the incumbent North Korean leader. Written by the veteran Washington Post correspondent Anna Fifield, the exhaustively researched new book, titled “The Great Successor: The Divinely Perfect Destiny of Brilliant Comrade Kim Jong Un” provides a more rounded picture of the first North Korean leader to meet the U.S. president.
Anna Fifield (@annafifield) came to KEI and sat down with KEI President Ambassador Kathleen Stephens – in fact, just before the Trump-Kim meeting on June 30, 2019 - for a brief chat.
Making Sense of North Korea's Re-Defector Press Conferences
Behind the Scenes of South Korea's Space Program
The Humanitarian Situation in North Korea
Overhauling a Nation: A Discussion on Economic Reforms in North Korea
Income Inequality: Important Economic Lessons Looking at South Korea
China-North Korea Relations: The Border Region, SEZs, and the Purge of Jang Song-taek
Australia, Korea and the Dynamics of Northeast Asia
The Francis Effect in Asia
Public Opinion in South Korea: Insights into Relations with U.S., China and Japan
A Frank Discussion on the Challenges for Economic Reform in North Korea
China and Northeast Asia
Prospects for the Future of the Kaesong Industrial Complex
South Korea - U.S. Nuclear Cooperation: Opportunities and Challenges
James Pearson : A Window Into Korean Internet Culture
Meet The Honorees : Korean American Day 2013
North Korea's Satellite Launch: Mark Fitzpatrick - IISS
Korea: The Impossible Country - Daniel Tudor
Psy & The Rise of K-Pop : Mark Russell
B.R. Myers - The Cleanest Race
Jennifer Lind: Dartmouth College
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