Major US, UK, and French Media Reports
Detailed Coverage of Our Citizens' Shooting Incident
Also Reports Controversy Over Public Officials' Defection to North Korea
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] Foreign media urgently reported that North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un sent an apology notice regarding the shooting and mutilation of the body of a South Korean official, describing it as a "very unusual" event. The foreign media also reported that North Korea burned the body and floating objects of the official killed in accordance with COVID-19 quarantine rules.
On the 25th, the US CNN broadcast evaluated, "It is extremely rare for the North Korean leader to apologize to the South on a specific issue." It added, "Amid the current intense criticism of President Moon Jae-in, this apology is expected to relatively ease anti-North sentiment in South Korea." The US news agency AP also described it as "extremely rare" for the North Korean leader to apologize to the South on a specific issue.
French AFP news agency sent an urgent report from Seoul stating that "North Korea apologized for shooting the defector." Japanese Kyodo News reported that "the North Korean leader apologized for the shooting death of a South Korean national." Major foreign media outlets conveyed the nature and content of the apology notice, along with the Blue House's explanation that North Korean soldiers burned the floating objects that the official was on after his body disappeared, as part of COVID-19 response measures.
The US daily The New York Times (NYT) reported, "Kim Jong-un issued a rare apology for the killing of a South Korean official by North Korean soldiers."
NYT also reported that North Korea denied in the notice that its soldiers burned the body, presenting a different explanation from the South Korean government. The US daily The Washington Post (WP), citing AP, also reported that Kim Jong-un apologized for killing the South Korean official.
British BBC broadcast reported that Kim Jong-un apologized to President Moon, saying that the "unfortunate incident" should not have happened. BBC noted that North Korea did not apologize even when 46 crew members died in the 2010 Cheonan incident, stating that it is rare for North Korea to respond to South Korea's apology demands.
The controversy surrounding the South Korean official shot by North Korea after the incident was also reported. AP reported, "The South Korean Ministry of National Defense stated that North Korea is known to have fired indiscriminately according to COVID-19 quarantine rules, and that the official appeared to have attempted to defect by relying on floating objects wearing a life jacket and leaving his shoes on the boat," adding, "However, some experts believe that this circumstance alone is not sufficient to conclude that the official attempted to defect."
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