Wednesday, March 20, 2013

N.Korean Diplomats 'Sell Millions of Dollars Worth of Drugs'


I wonder if any of  the resources we allocate for the war on drugs, any of the Joint Interagency Task Forces out there that focus on drugs, ever looks at this threat?

But we do not pay sufficient attention to the network of illicit north Korean activities around the world.  Targeting this network could provide multiple benefits:  pressure on the regime, loss of support of elite, intelligence about the how the network and regime operate, potential recruits for future operations in post conflict, post collapse, prevention of proliferation both now and after convict or collapse.  Department 39 and its network need to be addressed in a holistic manner with a long term focus and on a global scale.
V/R
Dave

N.Korean Diplomats 'Sell Millions of Dollars Worth of Drugs'
North Korea sent a large amount of illegal drugs to its embassy in an East European country last December and ordered diplomats there to sell it for cash by early April, a diplomatic source here claims.

"South Korean intelligence obtained the information from a North Korean agent who defected recently," the source said. "Similar orders were delivered to other North Korean embassies."

North Korea has ordered each diplomat to raise US$300,000 to prove their loyalty and mark the birthday of nation founder Kim Il-sung on April 15.

Each North Korean diplomatic mission overseas is required to send back around $100,000 to the North each year, the agent-turned-defector allegedly said. They used to complain that new leader Kim Jong-un is too demanding.

Each North Korean diplomat is estimated to have been given up to 20 kg of drugs, so the North Korean embassy in the East European country may seek to sell around 200 kg.

Under the guidance of Room 39, a secretive agency that managed the private coffers of former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, the North has been producing various types of illegal drugs and selling them abroad. South Korean authorities estimate North Korea's annual output of illicit drugs amount to 3,000 kg that translate into revenues of between $100 million and $200 million.
(Continued at the link below)

No comments:

Post a Comment

Giving Tuesday Recommendations

  Dear Friends,  I do not normally do this (except I did this last year and for the last few years now, too) and I certainly do not mean to ...