U.S. Paper Says Roh Is Kim’s Banker

“President Roh Moo-hyun is Mr. Kim’s personal banker.”

Conservative U.S. daily The Wall Street Journal used this expression in its editorial on Friday. The newspaper wrote, “We wonder if President Roh wants his legacy to include being Mr. Kim`s personal banker.”

The Wall Street Journal describes South Korea as “the last holdout in financing the Kim regime” since even China, Pyongyang’s only ally, joined the U.S.’ move to impose economic sanctions on North Korea. It also points out that “as recently as May, President Roh Moo-hyun declared support ‘without conditions’ for the North. Also, after the July missile tests, he seemed more upset that Japan decried the launches.”

The editorial, titled “Korean Cash Squeeze,” emphasized China’s participation in financial sanctions against North Korea, acknowledging that Beijing did not allow Pyongyang to move its money laundering site from Macau to Zhuhai in mainland China.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times reported on Sunday that in North Korea, “weapons are a key instrument of power,” aside from the purpose of achieving independent defense capabilities and securing foreign currency.

The newspaper quoted defectors on the ground that “because the regime is one of the world`s most secretive, information about the ways North Korea has nurtured its weapons programs can be gleaned only from defectors.”

The Los Angeles Times quoted Kim Duk Hong as saying, "Kim Jong Il doesn`t care if he bankrupts the rest of the country. He sees the missiles and nuclear weapons as the only way to maintain power." Mr. Kim was the former deputy director of the Juche Institute, a Pyongyang think tank devoted to North Korean ideology.

credo@donga.com