The North Korean people believe in Kim Jong Un when it comes to denuclearization, South Pyongan resident says in interview
Daily NK conducted an interview with a resident of North Korea’s South Pyongan Province on the topic of the third inter-Korean summit, which was held in Pyongyang on September 18. The interviewee was visiting family in China at the time of the interview.
He told us that unlike the previous two inter-Korean summits held in 2000 and 2007, North Korea’s current leader has a stronger desire to improve inter-Korean relations and this has led North Koreans to be hopeful that the recent summit will significantly improve the relationship.
Here is the full interview.
Daily NK (DNK): The leaders of the two Koreas recently held a summit in Pyongyang. When did you first hear about the summit plans and what did people think?
South Pyongan Province Resident (SPPR): People heard about it through the news and lectures delivered by Party officials, and many said they hoped the inter-Korean relationship would improve so the two Koreas can be one again. We have continued to believe from the second summit that [unification] will occur if the US doesn’t get involved because the two Koreas are one people. Lectures by Party officials have also told us that, so people just want things to go well.
There have been lectures held at the central government offices, the Ministry of State Security (MSS) and Ministry of People’s Security (MPS) and at individual enterprises. The general message is that the Party decided that because separated families are Koreans they need to meet each other and that inter-Korean relations will improve. I heard about the third summit about 20 days before I came to China, around mid-August. I think that the General [Kim Jong Un] will [meet Moon] at the airport. ......
[Source: Daily NK]
