As the country marks the 75th anniversary of the Workers' Party, is there any hope for engagement with the rest of the world - or are we seeing a return to past behaviour?
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CJR: Medical Mystery →
North Korea—where there have been no reported covid diagnoses, but lots of speculation about the leader’s health—is a particularly difficult story to cover.
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New York Times: North Korea Unveils What Appears to Be New ICBM During Military Parade →
Mr. Kim’s emotional apology was “a shrewd way of placing blame on circumstances beyond his control, and deflecting attention from the enormous resources poured into nuclear weapons,” Jean H. Lee, a North Korea expert at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, said in an email.
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Washington Post: ‘A Dear Leader approach’: Trump’s critics compare his shows of strength around coronavirus to authoritarian tactics →
Read MoreClearly, the North is taking more precautions than we are. That says more about us and our government and our response.
Washington Post: Trump’s dream of a Nobel Peace Prize kept alive by far-flung foreign allies →
“If anything, peace on the Korean Peninsula is even more elusive today, given the specter of a nuclear-emboldened North Korea,” said Jean Lee, director of the Korean Center at the Wilson Center.
Read MoreWall Street Journal: North Korea Loves Military Parades—Will Kim Jong Un Bring Out the Big Guns?
SEOUL—North Korea’s first military parade in two years is expected to feature throngs of spectators and plenty of propaganda, but the most closely watched element will be what, if any, new weapons leader Kim Jong Un puts on display for the world.
Read MoreNPR 1A: Coronavirus 102: The Latest Pandemic Guidance →
The world’s fight against COVID-19 isn’t going away.
Sometimes the information we do get isn’t exactly straightforward. What are the best practices for this moment in the pandemic? How should we consider risk, as more and more people return to work and regular activities?
Read MoreNPR: How To Stay Safe And Healthy As Coronavirus Cases Rise →
The U.S. continues to shatter its own daily record for new COVID-19 cases. Over 67,000 single-day infections were reported in the U.S. on July 14, according to Johns Hopkins University.
The surge is largely due to outbreaks in Texas, Florida, Arizona and California. But nearly all states are seeing their cases climb, and it's not concentrated in metropolitan areas.
What's going on here? Where is the U.S. in its fight against the pandemic? Are we losing?
Read MoreWashington Post: Kim Jong Un appears to be alive after all. So why did CNN and other news outlets report he was on his deathbed? →
Although it’s hard to know anything for sure about North Korea, the fertilizer-plant photo suggests the reporting about Kim over the past few weeks was a farrago of misinformation, non-information, half speculation and outright guessing.
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Blu Radio: ¿Kim Jong-un está vivo o muerto? →
La periodista Jean Lee, quien vivió en Corea del Norte, habló en Mañanas BLU sobre un escenario en ese país sin la existencia de Kim Jong-un, en medio de insistentes rumores de su muerte.
Read MoreFox Business: If Kim Jong Un is unwell, North Korea will likely go on lockdown to prepare succession plan: Expert →
Jean Lee speaks to Neil Cavuto of Fox Business about what might happen in North Korea if Kim Jong Un is unwell.
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NBC Today Show: Where is Kim Jong-un? Speculation intensifies over North Korean leader’s health →
Jean Lee speaks to Keir Simmons for the NBC Today Show about the rumors about Kim Jong Un.
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PBS NewsHour: Where is North Korea’s Kim Jong Un? An expert weighs in →
Jean joins PBS NewsHour to discuss rumors surrounding North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
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New York Times: Where Is Kim Jong-un? How Experts Track North Korea's Leader →
Rumors are swirling about Kim Jong-un’s location and health. These North Korea experts showed us how they collect information about his secretive regime.
Read MoreNPR All Things Considered: U.S. Holds Line On North Korea Sanctions, As U.N. Details How The Country Evades Them →
The coronavirus pandemic has given North Korea an excuse to further isolate itself and buy time, says Jean Lee of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. She says Kim Jong Un is using that time to build up leverage for future talks.
Read MoreHe is looking to expand his arsenal without directly confronting Trump. So we can expect continued tests that refine and improve technical aspects of North Korea's nuclear program.
Washington Post: With coronavirus, North Korea’s isolation is a possible buffer but also a worry →
With coronavirus, North Korea’s isolation is a possible buffer but also a worry
By Simon Denyer
March 4, 2020 at 12:36 a.m. EST
TOKYO — With the coronavirus, it may pay to be an isolated, paranoid loner.
As the epidemic grips China to the north and spreads quickly in South Korea on the other side of the demilitarized zone, North Korea’s separation from the global economy presents a rare advantage.
While the world frets about the coronavirus, North Korea’s nuclear weapons program has moved way down the global agenda. That could work in Kim’s favor, said Jean Lee at the Wilson Center. “The isolation buys him time to focus on his nuclear strategy as he watches political developments in the United States,” she said, before voicing a more hopeful thought.
“I’d like to see Kim accept goodwill offers of humanitarian assistance for the sake of his people,” she said. “That might also open up a window of diplomatic opportunity.”
BBC: Art of Now North Korea →
One of the largest art studios in the world is to be found in a most unexpected location.
Created in 1959 to produce art that revered the totalitarian regime, North Korea's Mansudae Art Studio now employs over 5000 staff, making it one of the biggest art-production sites in the world.
The studio makes everything from small sketches to monumental statues and murals for public buildings. Its artists are said to be the only ones permitted to portray North Korea's ruling family.
But propaganda is not its only aim: the studio is also driven by profit. In recent years, monuments and sculptures made by Mansudae artists, have popped up in Africa, Southeast Asia and even Germany.
Contributors:
Teresa Song, collector of North Korean art
Jean Lee, Director, Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy
Nick Bonner, co-founder Koryo Tours
BG Muhn, Professor of painting at Georgetown University
Song Byeok, artist
Onejoon Che, filmmaker and visual artist, responsible for 'Mansudae Master Class' project.
Hamish MacDonald, Associate Fellow at RUSI, the Royal United Services Institute
Photo Credit: Koryo Tours
Producer: Sarah Shebbeare
Read MoreThe Asia Group's Tea Leaves podcast with Kurt Campbell and Joseph Yun →
In this latest Tea Leaves episode, Jean sits down with Kurt and The Asia Group Senior Advisor Ambassador Joe Yun. The three discuss Jean’s number of years living in North Korea and the unique on-the-ground insights that she gained on North Korean politics, culture, and society.
Read MoreNBC News: North Korea signals end of nuclear-test suspension, promises 'new' weapon →
New York Times: What Kim Jong-un’s Latest Threats Say About His Trump Strategy →
“Kim Jong-un continues to hedge his bets,” said Jean H. Lee, a North Korea expert at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington. “I think we’ll see Kim continue to find ways to provoke Washington as a way to gain the upper hand in future nuclear negotiations without directly challenging President Trump.”
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