North Korean diplomat stationed in Cuba defects to South Korea

Ri Il Kyu, 52, counsellor of political affairs in Havana, defected with his family last November

A North Korean diplomat in Cuba defected to South Korea with his family in November last year, the South Korean spy agency has said, in what would be the highest-profile defection in recent years.

In a brief statement, the National Intelligence Service confirmed a South Korean newspaper’s report that Ri Il Kyu, 52, North Korean counsellor of political affairs in Cuba, defected last year.

As a counsellor, Mr Ri was tasked with blocking rival South Korea and old ally Cuba from forging diplomatic ties, Chosun Ilbo reported.

The two countries established diplomatic ties in February this year, weakening Pyongyang’s thin network of allies.

Mr Ri said he did not reveal his plan even to his family until hours before he pulled off the high-risk escape. "I bought flight tickets and called my wife and kid to tell them about my decision, six hours before the defection,” he said. “I didn’t say South Korea, but said, let’s live abroad.”

Mr Ri told Chosun Ilbo that he defected because of disillusionment with the North Korean political system.

But the Yonhap news agency, citing an unidentified South Korean official, reported that Mr Ri escaped after clashing with North Korean foreign ministry officials about his job evaluation.

Mr Ri’s is the latest defection from isolated North Korea. Those caught attempting to defect from the country face severe punishment, including death, according to human rights groups and defectors who have been successful.

The last high-profile defection from North Korea to South Korea was that of Tae Yong-ho, a former deputy ambassador to the UK, who escaped in 2016, drawing rebuke from Pyongyang.

Mr Tae said he fled because he did not want his children to live “miserable” lives in North Korea and that he felt “despair” after watching Kim Jong-un order the executions of officials and pursue the development of nuclear weapons.

North Korea called Mr Tae “human scum” and accused him of embezzling government money and committing other crimes. Mr Tae had been elected to South Korea’s parliament in 2020.

Mr Ri was inducted into North Korea’s foreign ministry in 1999 and applauded by the North Korean leader for successfully negotiating with Panama to end the detention of a North Korean ship caught carrying arms from Cuba in 2013, Chosun Ilbo said.

Mr Ri said North Korea denying his request to travel to Mexico for medical treatment last year was the final nail in the coffin in his decision to leave North Korea.

The death of his parents and parents-in-law, who might have faced reprisals for his defection, also helped him make up his mind, he said.

According to human rights groups, fewer North Korean defectors have been able to escape to the South in recent years due to strict limits on border crossings into China and hefty broker fees.

Last year, 196 North Korean defectors came to Seoul, down from nearly 2,700 a decade ago, according to data from the South Korean government.

In 2020, North Korean diplomat Jo Song-gil and his wife were reported to be living in South Korea after having disappeared in Italy. Mr Jo was working in the North Korean embassy in Rome as acting ambassador.

The year before, North Korea’s acting ambassador to Kuwait left for South Korea with his family. South Korean lawmakers said the diplomat changed his name to Ryu Hyun-woo after arriving in South Korea.