Content Author | NK PRO
October 04, 2024

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James Fretwell

James Fretwell

James Fretwell is a writer based in Seoul, South Korea. He was an analyst at NK News, and he has often discussed the two Koreas in interviews on the BBC, ABC News Australia, Deutsche Welle and elsewhere.

Analysis

How a last-ditch attempt to unify Korea cemented an all but permanent division

Geneva Conference sought to replace armistice agreement that ended Korean War, but only succeeded in splitting Vietnam

James FretwellJames FretwellAugust 1, 2023
Analysis

Kim Jong Un wants North Koreans to know: China and Russia love his nukes

DPRK used parade to show citizens suffering under pandemic controls that its massive military spending is all worth it

James FretwellJames FretwellJuly 28, 2023
Analysis

What awaits US soldier Travis King in North Korean detention

Pyongyang subjects detainees to grueling interrogations, and a few tragic cases show that not everyone escapes unscathed

James FretwellJames FretwellJuly 25, 2023
Analysis

How South Korea seeks to lure the next high-level North Korean defector

Evidence suggests Seoul is dangling jobs and rewards, but so far it’s getting more small fries than big fish

James FretwellJames FretwellJuly 21, 2023
Analysis

The other American soldiers who defected to North Korea and came to regret it

Past defectors fled punishment similar to recent border-crosser Travis King, and their fates may reflect on his

James FretwellJames FretwellJuly 19, 2023
Analysis

Seoul and Kyiv say Korean War is like conflict in Ukraine, and not alike at all

Leaders have underlined similarities when it aligns with their interests, while seeking to avoid a Korean-style division

James FretwellJames FretwellJuly 18, 2023
Analysis

When North Korea followed through on threats to shoot down a US spy plane

EC-121 incident led US to consider nuke strikes, showing how Kim Yo Jong’s recent warnings could spiral into conflict

James FretwellJames FretwellJuly 13, 2023
Analysis

What Seoul seeks to achieve by publishing report on North Korean human rights

Speakers at unification ministry event call for pressuring DPRK and China, but raising awareness likely won’t be enough

James FretwellJames FretwellJuly 12, 2023
Analysis

What Yoon’s controversial unification minister pick means for inter-Korean ties

North Korea likely to condemn Kim Yung-ho’s appointment, as Yoon remakes what he has disparaged as DPRK ‘aid ministry’

James FretwellJames FretwellJuly 7, 2023
Analysis

Inside North Korea’s strategy to stop defections by officials stranded abroad

The regime uses family as collateral and encourages snitching to prevent escapes, which could pick up ahead of reopening

James FretwellJames FretwellJune 23, 2023
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