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| Jang Song-thaek |
North Korea faced worldwide condemnation on Friday after confirming that it had executed Jang Song-thaek, the uncle of Kim Jong-un and the man regarded as the communist state's second in command.
Pyongyang issued an extraordinary announcement describing Jang as a "despicable human being" who was "worse than a dog" and saying he had been shot dead immediately after a military tribunal found him guilty of plotting to overthrow his 29-year-old nephew.
The Foreign Office condemned the regime's brutality and its effect on the stability of north Asia. "We are deeply concerned to learn of the execution of Jang," Hugo Swire, a Foreign Office minister said. "More broadly, we remain deeply concerned about the impact of this unpredictable regime on stability in the region.
"Our embassy in Pyongyang is monitoring the situation closely and we will continue to maintain close contact with our allies on this."
China, the North's sole major ally and economic lifeline, said the execution was an internal matter but emphasised the need for stability. "As a neighbour we hope to see national stability, economic development and people living in happiness in the DPRK," a foreign ministry spokesman said.
But a leading Chinese expert on Korea said Beijing was worried. "China will be concerned about any uncertainty brought by the personnel reshuffles," said Li Kaisheng, a fellow at Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences. "Stability in North Korea will be China's top priority now."
South Korea echoed Britain's comments, with its unification ministry saying: "The government has deep concerns about a recent series of developments in North Korea and is watching the situation closely."
Carl Bildt, the Swedish foreign minister, condemned the "Stalinist" execution. "I think that what we see now publicly is only the surface of an empire of horror," he said. » | Damien McElroy | Friday, December 13, 2013
