hankyoreh

By Lee Soon-hyuk

Controversy continues to grow over the exact place and circumstances over the death of North Korean National Defence Commission chairman Kim Jong-il. Following National Intelligence Service director Won Sei-hoon’s report at a meeting of the National Assembly’s Intelligence Committee on Tuesday that Kim’s special train had not moved for two days before his death, the Ministry of National Defense yesterday scrambled to provide back-up fire for Won.
“There have been reports that military and National Intelligence Service opinions differ [regarding whether the special train moved or not], but the intelligence sharing system is well constructed and we are exchanging information smoothly,” MND spokesman Kim Min-seok said yesterday. “You can believe the statement made by the director of the National Intelligence Service at the National Assembly’s Intelligence Committee.” Kim’s statement backed up Won’s raising, the previous day, of doubts regarding North Korea’s announcement that Kim had died in his train on the way back from on-the-spot guidance.
One government official, however, said, “On that day it was very cloudy so we were unable for some time to determine whether the train was moving or not. We confirmed that it was at a standstill in Pyongyang and then were unable to confirm its whereabouts for some time. We cannot exclude the possibility that it moved in the mean time, but in the end we drew the conclusion that it had stayed where it was; in Pyongyang.” Another official said, “Going by information sent by the Ministry of National Defense, it is correct that the train was in Pyongyang. But we also know that there was a special train near Hamheung. The confusion seems to be due to the fact that there are at least two special trains.” In addition, Kwon Young-se, chairman of the National Assembly’s National Defense Committee, said on a radio program on the same morning, “The special train may have moved and then come back.” Ultimately, the various diverging claims and analyses make it hard to confirm the facts clearly.　
In a tweet on the same day regarding the subject, Grand National Party lawmaker Won Hee-ryong stated, “It’s important to admit the mistakes made in gathering intelligence on North Korea and efforts be made to improve things in the future; it’s regrettable that the action being taken is centered on making excuses and has not gone beyond the level of raising minor issues with the North’s account of Kim’s death.” One military official said, “[The spokesman’s official announcement] was made in order to emphasize that ‘there are no differences in opinion between the military and the National Intelligence Service, but it’s doubtful whether it’s right for the Ministry of National Defense to set out to officially endorse the claim that North Korea made a false announcement.”　
There are significant concerns, too, that this could have an adverse effect upon intelligence cooperation with the United States. The NIS and the MND appear to be competing with each other to publicly release as many details captured by US spy satellites, regarding whether the special train moved or not, as possible. In the past, too, the US military has protested strongly regarding the arbitrary use by Korean governments of intelligence that it had supplied.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]