How Does Foreign Assistance Hold the North Korean Regime Together?

How Does Foreign Assistance Hold the North Korean Regime Together?

                                                                                Shinae Hong(shinae810@yahoo.com)

 

 

 International aid assistance has played a critical role in co-opting Kim’s elites.  The regime is able to maintain its political stability unless its ruling elites lose its cohesion.  Economic reward of lucrative goods of North Korea is distributed primarily to the ruling elites to increase their political loyalty. In return, the power-holding elite in the government, party, and military who depend on Kim regime for their fortune promote the goal of the state and maintain social control. By the same token, if Kim regime were no longer capable of providing economic rewards to the elites, it is highly likely weakening the tie between political loyalty of elites and the regime that is in return jeopardize the political stability. Since the 1990s the DPRK has experienced a series of catastrophic events domestically and the 2006 flood worsened the food shortage.

 

 

As a result, the North Korea has had little prospect of earning foreign capital from trade with other nations.  Only few regimes could sustain themselves under such enormous pressures unless by external actors. In order to secure the regime, it is the tactical goal of Kim regime to doggedly seek international aids.  It is highly likely to continue to rely on foreign aid until its economy has earned significant revenues to keep its regime in control.

 

 

Despite its self-reliance policy principles of juch'e, the DPRK has existed primarily as an aid-dependent state.  In 1995, North Korean officials requested assistance from the international community. Since then, the country has received 8.34 million metric tons (MT) of food, 80 percent of which came from four foreign governments including the United States, South Korea, China, and Japan (Figure 2).[1]

    

                   According to aWFP report, the DPRK was the recipient of the second largest shipments of international food aid since 2005.  Chinese shipments of petroleum and coal products to North Korea have also contributed significantly to the North Korean economy.  Chinese fuel exports — some of which were offered at “friendship prices” — roughly doubling after 2002. South Korea and Japan have also provided substantial amounts of funding for building the controversial light water nuclear reactors (LWRs) in North Korea through the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO).  KEDO was designed to provide energy assistance to North Korea through construction of the two LWRs.  Between 1995 and 2003, the U.S. supplied over $400 million to KEDO, of which nearly $380 million went towards fuel, while the remainder paid for the organization’s administrative expenses.[2]  In addition, the European Union (EU), including a contribution from Russia, donated $95.8 million (Table 3).[3]

 

Table 3:  KEDO Contributions, by Country

	ROK	Japan	U.S	EU
Total (1995-2004)	1,364.4	480.9	405.1	121.4
2003-2004	470.0	147.5	3.7	2.4

Source: KEDO    ($ millions)

 

However, aid to North Korea has been a source of contention at various times among the United States, South Korea, China, Russia, and Japan since North Korea develops the weapons of mass destruction and use it as a diplomatic leverage to gain economic aids and its unpredictable, aggressive behavior. Nonetheless, international actors have provided a full pledge of aid to North Korea due to an array of transnational security issues it will pose if the regime breaks down. 

 

   

 

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[1] See Mark E. Manyin, “Foreign Assistance to North Korea,” CRS Report For Congress,(May,26,2005.) Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress.

 

[2] Ibid.  pp. 29-30.

[3] Ibid.  pp. 29-30.

Shinae_Hong_0930.doc