SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean intelligence said Tuesday that a North Korean diplomat stationed in Cuba has defected to South Korea.
The National Intelligence Service said media reports of the desertion of a North Korean political affairs adviser in Cuba were true, but gave no further details.
South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported earlier on Tuesday that the North Korean diplomat, identified as Ri Il Kyu, fled to South Korea with his wife and children in November last year.
Ri’s defection is the latest in a series of defections of North Korean diplomats to South Korea in recent years.
The Chosun Ilbo report quoted Ri as telling the newspaper that he had decided to desert because of disillusionment with North Korea’s political system. But the Yonhap news agency, citing an unidentified South Korean government source, reported that Ri decided to flee after conflicts with North Korean Foreign Ministry officials over his performance evaluations.
South Korea’s Ministry of Unification and Foreign Ministry said they could not confirm reports of Ri’s defection.
Since the end of the Korean War (1950-1953), approximately 34,000 North Koreans have defected to South Korea to escape economic hardship and political oppression.
