NIS: "Kim Jong-un Likely Not Informed in Advance... North Korea's Apology Unprecedented"

Non-public Briefing of the National Assembly Intelligence Committee on the 25th

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] The National Intelligence Service (NIS) stated on the 25th that North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un appears not to have been informed in advance regarding the shooting incident involving the missing public official from Yeonpyeong Island.

Jeon Hae-cheol, chairman of the National Assembly Intelligence Committee, and Kim Byung-gi, the Democratic Party's secretary, told reporters immediately after a closed briefing of the Intelligence Committee held at the National Assembly that day, "There is no definite judgment or basis, but there was a mention by the head of the NIS regarding this," indicating as such.

Rep. Jeon said, "Regarding the letter released this morning, the initial judgment is that it is very unusual," adding, "Since the West Sea battle, North Korea has never expressed an apology. The fact that they said sorry this time, judging by the level of expression and the way it was described, is quite unusual and appears to be a sincere apology."

Rep. Kim said, "Despite the doctrine of the infallibility of the leader, which usually prevents apologies, the fact that they apologized twice and subsequently notified measures to prevent recurrence is a significant advancement."

The NIS stated, "On August 25, North Korea issued orders to shoot when there were border crossings," and "On September 21, the Emergency Epidemic Command issued instructions regarding incineration as a response to COVID-19. We confirmed that such orders were found several times in North Korea."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.