Author: Andrei Nikolaevich Lankov
N. Korea’s ‘organizational life’ in decline
Communist societies loved to educate their subjects. Initially, this penchant for education began with a rather noble aim in mind. Communism itself was the child of the European Enlightenment and […]
N. Korea’s 2002 reforms have lasting consequences
Half-forgotten N. Korean economic reforms not to be overlooked One of the important peculiarities of North Korea is its stubborn unwillingness to take the reform path trodden thus far by […]
How social exchanges can help solve North Korea problem
North Korea is not an ordinary country. It is a major problem for the international community that has been remarkably resistant to solutions over the last two decades. Since the […]
N. Korea: player in the Gwangju Democratic Uprising?
Korean history as seen in South Korea is deeply contentious. It is not incidental that many school textbooks prefer to stop their narrative around 1960, quietly assuming that what happened […]
The ‘third Korea’ Yanbian in decline
As everybody knows, there are two Koreas – North and South. There is also, however, another area that is often described as the ‘third Korea’ – the Yanbian Korean autonomous […]
Kaesong: A ‘hot potato’ for N. Korea
So far, the Kaesong industrial zone, the largest intra-Korean economic project, has survived three nuclear tests, a number of long-range missile launches and a few armed clashes on the Korean […]
How long will N. Korea’s regime last?
Three problems of young leader How stable is the North Korean government? Is it going to continue indefinitely? And if it does not, what is its life expectancy? The present […]
N. Korea’s bluffing works again
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING North Korea has scored another brilliant diplomatic success. It has scared the world and created a sense of acute international crisis out of nothing. In the […]
NK’s effort to block defectors pays off
Where have all the NK refugees gone? In late February, I was travelling in an area which should be frequently visited by any serious North Korean watcher – the parts […]
Chinese Non-action
Despite sanction, China remains staunch NK supporter On the 9th of March, the Chinese foreign minister, Yang Jiechi held a news conference in Beijing. Predictably, one of the questions was […]