North Korea in a Nutshell: A Contemporary Overview

North Korea is a secretive country with a history of three generations of the Kim regime, a robust military force, a struggling economy, and harsh international sanctions. Despite Kim Jong-uns despotic control, the authors argue that North Korea cannot continue on its current path indefinitely due to the gap between his elite supporters and the other twenty-four million North Koreans, the economic and technological gap between South Korea and North Korea, and younger people becoming disenchanted as they learn more about the outside world.

Format: Hardback
Length: 280 pages
Publication date: 11 August 2021
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

North Korea, one of the world's most enigmatic nations, is explored in this insightful book. Two renowned experts, Kongdan Oh and Ralph Hassig, trace the country's history from its establishment in 1948 and delve into its multifaceted political, economic, social, and cultural life. The authors shed light on a hidden nation ruled by three generations of the secretive Kim regime, a family dynasty more fitting for the Middle Ages than the modern era. North Korea boasts a robust but outdated military force, including a growing arsenal of weapons of mass destruction, to deter and defend against foreign attacks and maintain independence and isolation from the rest of the world. The struggling economy, disconnected from the global marketplace, operates under harsh international sanctions. All North Koreans, from the highest party cadres to the youngest children living in prison camps, are essentially servants of the leader. Despite Kim Jong-un's despotic control, the authors argue that North Korea cannot continue on its current path indefinitely. Kim treats even his closest associates harshly, and the gap is widening between his elite supporters, numbering a million or so, and the other twenty-four million North Koreans. The economic and technological gap between South Korea and North Korea is increasing as well, and younger people are becoming disenchanted as they gradually learn more about the outside world.

Weight: 548g
Dimension: 159 x 235 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781538151389