Commentaries on the transition process in North Korea
Dr Ramon Pacheco Pardo of the Departments of European & International Studies and Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies has been commenting on the transition process in North Korea in different European media, including Voice of Russia, Metro International and El Pais, Spain’s leading newspaper.
Dr Pacheco Pardo argues that the transition from Kim Jong Il to his son, Kim Jong Un will not produce a significant shift in North Korea’s domestic politics and foreign policy. The younger Kim is still surrounded by the same group of advisers who held leadership positions under his father’s regime. Thus, North Korea is likely to continue to pursue its nuclear weapons programme, unless the regime obtains substantial political and economic benefits in return for interrupting it.