A senior North Korean diplomat stationed in Cuba defected to South Korea with his wife and children last November, becoming the highest-ranking North Korean diplomat to flee to South Korea since 2016.
The 52-year-old Ri Il Kyu, who had been a counselor at the North Korean Embassy in Cuba since April 2019, was reportedly responsible for hindering the reconciliation between South Korea and Cuba. However, in February this year, South Korea and Cuba established diplomatic relations.
Ri told the South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo that he decided to defect due to his disappointment with the North Korean regime and unfair evaluations of his work. After his request for medical treatment in Mexico was denied last year, he made the decision to defect.
“I bought a plane ticket and six hours before defecting, I informed my wife and children of my decision over the phone. I didn’t say we were going to South Korea, but rather, let’s live abroad,” Ri said.
He left Cuba with his family, but did not disclose the details of how he managed the high-risk defection.
Ri mentioned that many North Koreans dream of living in South Korea to provide a better future for the children in their impoverished country.
Ri joined the North Korean Foreign Ministry in 1999 and was commended by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in 2013 for negotiating the release of a seized North Korean ship during talks with Panama. The North Korean Embassy in Cuba is still operational, but its ambassador returned to North Korea in March this year.
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) Public Affairs Office issued a brief statement on Tuesday confirming media reports about a North Korean political affairs advisor defecting in Cuba but did not provide further details.
In July 2016, Tae Yongho, the second-ranking official at the North Korean Embassy in London, defected to South Korea with his family. Tae, who later became a member of the South Korean National Assembly in 2020, expressed his despair with the North Korean regime and his desire for the freedom and democracy of South Korea, hoping for a brighter future for his children.
According to Reuters, human rights organizations and experts state that in recent years, the number of North Korean defectors arriving in South Korea has decreased due to strict restrictions at the border crossings in China and high intermediary fees.
South Korean government data shows that 196 defectors arrived in Seoul last year, significantly lower than the 2,700 people ten years ago. Activists for human rights note that recent defectors to South Korea are mostly long-term residents overseas North Koreans.
The detailed circumstances of defectors often take several months to be disclosed as defectors undergo screening by South Korean authorities and receive education on South Korean society and its systems.