U.S. rights report omits critique of North Korean regime

The U.S. State Department said on Aug. 12 that North Korea “maintained state control through executions, physical abuse, enforced disappearances, and guilt by association.” The statement, included in the “2024 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices,” was the first such report released during President Donald Trump’s second term and underscored the country’s dire human rights situation as a serious concern.

The report spans 25 pages, less than half the 53 pages of the 2023 report issued under former President Joe Biden. It also omits the direct criticism of North Korea’s political system included last year. This has led to speculation that the State Department softened its tone to align with President Trump’s approach, as he has emphasized his personal rapport with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and expressed willingness for direct talks.

The department cited “arbitrary or unlawful killings, disappearances, torture, and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, as well as involuntary or coerced medical and psychological treatment” as major human rights issues in North Korea. It also criticized arbitrary arrest and detention, state oppression of individuals abroad, severe restrictions on freedom of expression and the press, and limits on religious freedom. On killings, it noted “numerous reports that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings.”

The report said North Korea, citing nongovernmental organizations and defectors, forced abortions on women repatriated from China while pregnant, political prisoners, and pregnant women with disabilities, as well as on survivors of sexual assault by government officials and prison guards. It added that the government took no credible steps to identify or punish officials responsible for such abuses.

North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency reported on Aug. 13 that Kim Jong Un spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Aug. 12. The Kremlin also confirmed the call, saying Putin and Kim shared information about President Trump’s summit scheduled for Aug. 15.

North Korea has actively supported Russia in the war in Ukraine, which began with Moscow’s invasion in February 2022. Since October last year, Pyongyang has deployed about 12,000 troops to Russia’s southwestern Kursk region, one of the fiercest battlefronts in the conflict. It has also continued supplying munitions and other weapons. Analysts say the countries’ military ties have deepened to the level of a blood alliance. The Kremlin said Putin thanked Kim for North Korea’s support in “liberating” the Kursk territory from Ukrainian invasion, praising the courage, heroism, and dedication of North Korean troops.


Jin-Woo Shin niceshin@donga.com