How a ‘new Cold War’ is making North Korea more risk-averse – Ep. 331

North Korea News Podcast

A German delegation traveled to North Korea this week to inspect the condition of the country’s embassy in Pyongyang, in what appears to be the first visit by European staff in some four years. NK News Seoul Correspondent Ifang Bremer (@IfangBremer) discusses what this could mean for a broader DPRK border reopening and the return of international aid agencies, as well as the five-year anniversary of the failed Hanoi Summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Then, Professor Ruediger Frank joins the podcast to talk about how the DPRK has reassessed risk amid the emergence of a “new Cold War” and how this has driven its recent closure of embassies in several countries. He also discusses Pyongyang’s relationship with Beijing and Moscow and why he believes Kim Jong Un has not actually given up on reunification despite the DPRK’s recent revision of its inter-Korean policy. Dr. Ruediger Frank (@Ruediger Frank) is a professor of East Asian economy and society at the University of Vienna, where he heads the Department of East Asian Studies. He spent one semester as a language student at Kim Il Sung University in Pyongyang in 1991/1992. He holds a master’s degree in Korean studies and international relations and a Ph.D. in economics. About the podcast: The North Korea News Podcast is a weekly podcast hosted by Jacco Zwetsloot (@JaccoZed) exclusively for NK News, covering all things DPRK — from news to extended interviews with leading experts and analysts in the field, along with insight from our very own journalists.