March 28, 2024
Analysis

Kim’s New Year’s address indicates bumpy road for inter-Korean ties

Leader's latest address displays new-found independence from the legacy of his father, grandfather

Since 2013, for the last three years Kim Jong Un has used his New Year's address to speak of North Korea’s prospects and its policy conceptions. Obviously, as North Korea’s governmental system is different from other parts of the world, their annual address does not always correspond to what they said in the early days of the year. Often, Kim’s oration ends up as nothing but rhetoric.

But researchers can’t skip analysis of Kim’s words, as the message comes from the one and only Suryong, the Supreme Leader, giving important clues as to which direction North Korea will head in this year.

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