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Photos of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il smiling brightly inside the Chinese Embassy in Pyeongyang are having a strange effect on the minds of South Koreans. On Sunday, Kim visited the Chinese Embassy, accompanied by an entourage of high-ranking officials, including Workers' Party Secretary Kim Ki-nam, First Director of the KWP Central Committee Yi Yong-chul, First Vice Foreign Minister Kang Sok-ju, and Vice Minister of the Armed Forces Kim Jong-gak. There he joined Chinese Ambassador Liu Xiaoming and embassy staff to celebrate the traditional Chinese Lantern Festival on the first full moon of the Lunar New Year.
In photos released by the Chinese Embassy, the North Korean leader is either sitting across Ambassador Liu and his wife, with a wide smile on his face or engaged in a friendly conversation. The key North Korean officials are gathered nearby, their hands politely folded on their laps and their gazes fixed on the two men.
Under normal diplomatic circumstances, one of the few times an ambassador can meet the head of a country is when he is being given his credentials. And that meeting takes place inside the office of the president. An ambassador is usually matched with a Foreign Ministry official of the host country. South Korea¡¯s vice foreign minister deals with the U.S. ambassador. This is the usual protocol under the normal circumstances.
This is the third time after 2000 and 2001 that Kim has visited the Chinese Embassy. The Chinese ambassador had reportedly invited him. The de facto foreign minister of North Korea, Kang Sok-ju, accompanied Kim that day. The North Korean leader¡¯s visit to the Chinese Embassy usually led to his visit to Beijing that year and every time that happened, major changes took place in North Korea.
In just a few years, China acquired 50-year rights to a North Korean iron, coal, copper, zinc, gold and molybdenum mines. Exclusive, 50-year usage rights to Rhajin Port, construction rights to the Tumen River-Chongjin rail way also went over to China. It is no wonder that people are starting to say North Korea is becoming another Chinese province.
What would happen if the president of South Korea, at the invitation of the U.S. ambassador, visited the U.S. Embassy, flanked by his ruling party members, chief military officers and foreign minister to celebrate Christmas? Left-wing forces in South Korea would call the country the 51st state of America, criticizing the government for being a vassal of Washington. It would be very interesting to find out what these left-wing factions, who are so dedicated to independent governance, think of Kim¡¯s visit to the Chinese Embassy at the calling of Beijing¡¯s diplomatic representative?
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