Word: kim
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...Though these weaknesses might be exploited to force better behavior, Kim has not been swayed in the past by the deaths of a few million of his countrymen. Some observers say sanctions would be a waste of time, because foreign trade with the North is already negligible. "Shortages of power and food are a natural thing to [North Koreans]," said Lee Sang Man, an economist at Chung-Ang University in Seoul. Shutting down legitimate trade and aid would punish ordinary citizens, but it would probably do little to undermine Kim, who maintains power through repression and a system of payoffs...
...CHINA OPTION For sanctions to work, Kim's neighbors and two largest donor countries, China and South Korea, would have to be persuaded to participate. Neither country can make the decision lightly. The South Koreans are terrified that sanctions could lead to an all-out war. If Kim's government collapses instead, a tide of refugees will flood China and South Korea. But even Kim's friends appear to be losing patience. China, North Korea's largest trade partner and donor and its closest ally, is as afraid of a nuclear-armed North as it is of refugees. Beijing...
...Some Washington hawks believe China might even be willing to help undermine the regime. U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld circulated a memo, leaked on the eve of talks, advocating that the U.S. team up with China to oust Kim through diplomatic pressure. "When push comes to shove, China may be willing to pull the plug," said Gordon Flake, a North Korea expert at the Mansfield Center for Pacific Affairs in Washington...
...Kim, however, has proven surprisingly resilient. A 1997 study by a South Korean think tank that compared North Korea to communist-bloc countries before they collapsed concluded the North could have suffered the same fate - in 1992. The regime "is surviving and will continue to survive for the time being," said Kim Sung Chull, one of the report's authors. One reason is that Kim is supported by an élite group of military officers, party cadres and security officials who haven't been as affected by the economic collapse as the general population and who see their fate linked...
...system," said Tak Eun Hyuk, a defector from a powerful North Korean family. More news from the outside world is leaking into the country across the northern border with China, and some North Koreans are starting to realize they have been duped. But when citizens waver in their loyalty, Kim has a repressive machine to equal Saddam's. An estimated 200,000 North Koreans are locked away in remote gulags. Those seen as enemies of the state vanish in middle-of-the-night raids. Refugees attempting to return from China have been caught and publicly executed...