North Korea never goes out of its way to clarify for the rest of the world the titles, roles and responsibilities of anyone in North Korea. It considers confusing the rest of the world to be an important element of its security strategy, regime watchers are always left piecing clues together about who is in charge of what, and why, and for how long.

Eric Foley

Categorized in : Latest Headlines

First lady Ri seems to have been portrayed as offering guidance – not to her husband, of course, but to the factory workers. It is rare for anyone other than Kim Jong Un, or Kim Jong Il or Kim Il Sung before him, to publicly offer guidance to anyone, even at the highest level, most trusted people are rarely ever shown doing that. So this certainly shows a high level of official trust in her. It also suggests an effort to bolster and soften the public positioning of the Pyongyang line to have him visit a cosmetics factory, and have them both appearing to offer guidance to the workers.

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If the regime confirms first ladies, it would have to explain why Kim Jong Un’s mother was not Kim Jong’s Il’s wife but one of his consorts, and why more legitimate heirs were passed up.

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