North Korea succession: Analysts see turbulent period ahead
| Washington
The prospect of a Western-educated son taking the reins of power from Kim Jong-il, the ailing leader of a closed and backward North Korea, may sound promising.
But as US officials try to divine what a possible transition from Mr. Kim to his son Kim Jong-un would mean for US-North Korea relations and for the myriad security issues confronting north Asia, regional analysts are generally more focused on the implications of the son鈥檚 young age 鈥� either 28 or 29 鈥� than on his years of schooling in Switzerland.
Would such a young leader, especially one with knowledge of a prosperous and free world beyond North Korea鈥檚 borders, be more apt to press for changes to bring his country into the 21st century? Or would such a young and untested newcomer to the North鈥檚 leadership be most anxious to prove his toughness to the country鈥檚 military hierarchy?
鈥淎t first glance this can seem like a good thing 鈥� that with new people in power, maybe a younger generation will be more open to modernizing the country and opening up to the West,鈥� says Jim Walsh, a North Korea expert in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology鈥檚 security studies program.
鈥淏ut in the near term any transition is likely to be bad news,鈥� he adds. The 鈥渘atural inclination鈥� of any new leader, and especially a young and untried one, he says, would be 鈥渢o be more assertive 鈥� in a period of vulnerability.鈥�
Noting that any transition in leadership could deteriorate into a fight for power, Mr. Walsh adds, 鈥淲e will have to get through what could be a very dangerous period.鈥�
Son is promoted
North Korea鈥檚 state-run media announced ahead of the opening Tuesday of a rare Workers鈥� Party meeting that Kim Jong-un had been promoted to the rank of four-star general, a move widely interpreted as paving the way for him to assume power from his father. The son could also be granted a leadership title within the Workers鈥� Party, some experts speculate, as a way of giving him standing in the regime鈥檚 two power bases. Kim Jong-il was reelected by the party congress, though analysts were quick to point out that doesn鈥檛 mean a transition is not in progress.
Whatever role Kim Jong-un takes, many US officials and North Korea experts foresee a period of risk and turbulence ahead as a new and untried leadership moves to prove itself. Defense Secretary Robert Gates appeared to to be reflecting that thinking earlier this year when he attributed the deadly sinking of a South Korean naval vessel, the Cheonan, to a rising young leader seeking to silence any misgivings over his rise and to establish legitimacy among military leaders.
Events in North Korea will be unpredictable if an aging military hierarchy is asked to bow to a virtually unknown twenty-something.
鈥淢ost of the senior military leaders would be 50 to 55 years older than this son, so they鈥檇 have to be asking themselves how much longer they would have a role in the government,鈥� says Bruce Bennett, a senior defense analyst at the Rand Corp. in Santa Monica, Calif. 鈥淎nd we know that when replacements take place in North Korea they usually occur as the result of a purge or a 鈥榯raffic accident,鈥� so that could be cause for some instability.鈥�
At least publicly, US officials are taking a wait-and-see approach to events in North Korea, suggesting that at most the US will consult with partners in the region on the ramifications of any transition in leadership.
"Strategic patience"
鈥淭丑别 United States is watching developments in North Korea carefully, and we will be engaged with all of our partners in the Asian Pacific region as we try to assess the meaning of what鈥檚 transpiring there,鈥� said Kurt Campbell, assistant secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, in comments to reporters Monday. He added that it is 鈥渟till too early to tell in terms of next steps, or in fact, what鈥檚 going on inside the country鈥檚 leadership.鈥�
What strikes some North Asia experts is that the US is sticking with a policy of 鈥渟trategic patience鈥� toward North Korea 鈥� reinforcing relations with North Korea鈥檚 neighbors while awaiting the North鈥檚 compliance with international demands and keeping contacts with Pyongyang to a minimum 鈥� despite the Obama administration鈥檚 stated preference for dialogue and engagement.
"Obama used to say talking is not a reward, talking is a way to protect US national interests,鈥� says MIT鈥檚 Walsh. 鈥淭his is exactly the time we need to be talking to North Korea, so we avoid the misperceptions and miscalculations that could lead to some very unfortunate circumstances.鈥�
Other analysts say the US should stick to its path and demand that the North honor its 2007 commitment to denuclearize before making any gestures toward it. But Mr. Bennett, the Rand analyst, says this may be the moment for the US to extend a hand, in particular toward the North Korean people.
鈥淥ne could argue that if we do see a succession, that gives the US the opportunity to say, 鈥楩or six months or a year we are going to take actions, like extending humanitarian aid, that are more friendly towards the new government,鈥� and give them every chance in a clearly limited time frame to respond,鈥� he says.
Bennett says that approach 鈥渨ould have the added advantage of starting to prepare a suffering people for what may one day be massive aid from the US and South Korea 鈥� because you just never know when the regime could come completely apart.鈥�
