North Korea’s former No.2 diplomat in Cuba recalls dramatic, swift defection in likely blow to Kim

Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Ri Il Gyu, North Korea’s former No.2 diplomat in Cuba, who has resettled in South Korea, says he fled to South Korea with his family last November in frustration over his highly repressive, corrupt homeland. He told The Associated Press that he finished all necessary prep work for the defection alone and told his family about the plan only six hours before they left Cuba. The defection by Ri — a former political counselor at the North’s Embassy in Cuba — was only made public last month. It has likely angered North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, because it could prompt his other diplomats to follow Ri in a blow to his grip on the country’s elites.