Obama says North leader in good health
Published: 22 Sep. 2009, 01:29
WASHINGTON - U.S. President Barack Obama said Sunday that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is healthy and in firm control of state affairs.
“I think President Clinton’s assessment was that (Kim Jong-il is) pretty healthy and in control,” Obama said in an interview with CNN. “That’s important to know, because we don’t have a lot of interaction with the North Koreans. And, you know, President Clinton had a chance to see him close up and have conversations with him.”
Obama was speaking about former President Bill Clinton’s visit to Pyongyang early last month to negotiate with Kim for the release of two American journalists held in the North.
Obama said he would “not go into any more details than that,” but added, “There’s no doubt that this is somebody who, you know, I think for a while people thought was slipping away. He’s reasserted himself. It does appear .?.?. he was more concerned about succession when he was sick, maybe less so now that he’s well.”
Obama’s remarks are in line with those of Adm. Timothy Keating, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, who said last week that “Kim Jong-il was upright. He appears to be cogent and entertaining reasonable discussions with the former president. We were less certain of those capabilities than we are now.”
Clinton’s Pyongyang trip appears to have ended suspicions over the health of the reclusive leader as reports had grown that he had begun the process of ceding power to his third and youngest son, Jong-un, after apparently suffering a stroke in the summer of 2008.
Kim’s health has been often cited for the North’s provocations early this year, including its second nuclear test and a barrage of missile tests.
A possible regime collapse has since been a topic of discussion not only in the academic circles, but also within the U.S. government.
A U.S. government team is examining several scenarios, including “regime collapse in North Korea,” for inclusion in the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review, the first to be released under the Obama administration.
The U.S. has also reached out to China, but the Beijing government refused to discuss the possibility of a regime change or collapse in the North, apparently to avoid provoking its closest communist ally.
Keating said in July that the U.S. has developed scenarios to cope with any contingency in North Korea in the event of the death of its leader.
“We are prepared to execute a wide range of options in concert with allies in South Korea and in discussions through (the Department of) State, which would have the lead, with countries in the region, and internationally if necessary,” he said. “I don’t think it is axiomatic that the departure of Kim Jong-il means a national security crisis. We’d hope it wouldn’t. But we are going to be prepared if it does mean that.”
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in February also touched on the issue.
“There is an increasing amount of pressure because, if there is succession, even if it is a peaceful succession, that creates even more uncertainty and it also may encourage behaviors that are even more provocative as a way to consolidate power within the society.”
Yonhap
“I think President Clinton’s assessment was that (Kim Jong-il is) pretty healthy and in control,” Obama said in an interview with CNN. “That’s important to know, because we don’t have a lot of interaction with the North Koreans. And, you know, President Clinton had a chance to see him close up and have conversations with him.”
Obama was speaking about former President Bill Clinton’s visit to Pyongyang early last month to negotiate with Kim for the release of two American journalists held in the North.
Obama said he would “not go into any more details than that,” but added, “There’s no doubt that this is somebody who, you know, I think for a while people thought was slipping away. He’s reasserted himself. It does appear .?.?. he was more concerned about succession when he was sick, maybe less so now that he’s well.”
Obama’s remarks are in line with those of Adm. Timothy Keating, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, who said last week that “Kim Jong-il was upright. He appears to be cogent and entertaining reasonable discussions with the former president. We were less certain of those capabilities than we are now.”
Clinton’s Pyongyang trip appears to have ended suspicions over the health of the reclusive leader as reports had grown that he had begun the process of ceding power to his third and youngest son, Jong-un, after apparently suffering a stroke in the summer of 2008.
Kim’s health has been often cited for the North’s provocations early this year, including its second nuclear test and a barrage of missile tests.
A possible regime collapse has since been a topic of discussion not only in the academic circles, but also within the U.S. government.
A U.S. government team is examining several scenarios, including “regime collapse in North Korea,” for inclusion in the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review, the first to be released under the Obama administration.
The U.S. has also reached out to China, but the Beijing government refused to discuss the possibility of a regime change or collapse in the North, apparently to avoid provoking its closest communist ally.
Keating said in July that the U.S. has developed scenarios to cope with any contingency in North Korea in the event of the death of its leader.
“We are prepared to execute a wide range of options in concert with allies in South Korea and in discussions through (the Department of) State, which would have the lead, with countries in the region, and internationally if necessary,” he said. “I don’t think it is axiomatic that the departure of Kim Jong-il means a national security crisis. We’d hope it wouldn’t. But we are going to be prepared if it does mean that.”
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in February also touched on the issue.
“There is an increasing amount of pressure because, if there is succession, even if it is a peaceful succession, that creates even more uncertainty and it also may encourage behaviors that are even more provocative as a way to consolidate power within the society.”
Yonhap
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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