Americans for Intelligence Reform

Brad Johnson, President, and retired CIA Senior Officer and Chief of Staff. Insight into current events from an intelligence angle.

Brad Johnson on rumors that North Korean leader is terminally ill.

 

https://youtu.be/I5O0RkJSJvo

 

[expander_maker id=”8″ more=”Click here for entire transcript” less=”Read less”]

0:00:00.000,0:00:07.680
grab Johnson it’s April 22nd and in

0:00:03.179,0:00:10.590
geopolitical news there are very strong

0:00:07.680,0:00:13.019
rumors that the leader of North Korea is

0:00:10.590,0:00:15.480
a wall that he’s either passed away or

0:00:13.019,0:00:18.439
he’s in very serious brain-dead

0:00:15.480,0:00:21.359
condition which I I’m told is also a

0:00:18.439,0:00:24.210
upgrade for that particular guy and his

0:00:21.359,0:00:26.480
sister looks like she’s poised to take

0:00:24.210,0:00:28.769
over what do we know about that

0:00:26.480,0:00:30.689
yeah there’s it’s interesting now a

0:00:28.769,0:00:32.910
couple of aspects on this worth noting

0:00:30.689,0:00:35.850
now that there’s a lot of information

0:00:32.910,0:00:37.920
out there that saying he’s as you say

0:00:35.850,0:00:40.500
very badly damaged in one way or another

0:00:37.920,0:00:42.390
and has gone in for some form of surgery

0:00:40.500,0:00:43.950
now of course it’s a closed system in

0:00:42.390,0:00:46.590
North Korea so we don’t really know

0:00:43.950,0:00:48.180
what’s going on to counterbalance that

0:00:46.590,0:00:49.559
because the information is sort of

0:00:48.180,0:00:51.960
overwhelming everybody’s kind of

0:00:49.559,0:00:54.270
assuming that he is indeed sick to

0:00:51.960,0:00:55.649
counterbalance that South Korea is

0:00:54.270,0:00:58.800
reporting that they don’t have any

0:00:55.649,0:01:00.480
information that that’s true now I give

0:00:58.800,0:01:02.579
a lot of weight to the South Korea

0:01:00.480,0:01:04.470
aspect of this because South Korea

0:01:02.579,0:01:06.299
there’s nobody more interested in the

0:01:04.470,0:01:08.010
world in what’s going on in North Korea

0:01:06.299,0:01:10.320
than South Korea because they still got

0:01:08.010,0:01:12.119
the DMZ in the Demilitarized Zone that

0:01:10.320,0:01:13.680
border there’s a lot of conflict from

0:01:12.119,0:01:15.180
time to time along that border and

0:01:13.680,0:01:18.720
including shooting and killing people

0:01:15.180,0:01:20.130
it’s it’s not a safe area and so this is

0:01:18.720,0:01:22.680
something where they’re finely attuned

0:01:20.130,0:01:24.720
to this and I would know I don’t know

0:01:22.680,0:01:26.850
this so if I’m not drawing from special

0:01:24.720,0:01:29.700
knowledge but you’ve got to assume that

0:01:26.850,0:01:32.280
they have a great deal of reporting from

0:01:29.700,0:01:33.810
inside North Korea of one form or

0:01:32.280,0:01:36.479
another whether it’s from the media but

0:01:33.810,0:01:38.390
their capability to watch and analyze is

0:01:36.479,0:01:40.860
superior to anyone’s in in my opinion

0:01:38.390,0:01:43.140
maybe it’s certainly equal to the United

0:01:40.860,0:01:46.950
States I would say on the one subject of

0:01:43.140,0:01:48.270
North Korea now they’re saying there’s

0:01:46.950,0:01:49.409
no information to confirm that they

0:01:48.270,0:01:52.259
don’t have any reason to believe that

0:01:49.409,0:01:54.479
it’s true so like I said I now take the

0:01:52.259,0:01:56.189
reporting with a great deal of salt if

0:01:54.479,0:01:58.680
you will just because of the South Korea

0:01:56.189,0:02:00.119
perspective however that said let’s just

0:01:58.680,0:02:03.090
go on and assume it’s true for the

0:02:00.119,0:02:04.590
moment and what will happen because if

0:02:03.090,0:02:06.659
it’s not true he’ll just show back up

0:02:04.590,0:02:08.550
out of stage and be yelling at somebody

0:02:06.659,0:02:10.460
or doing something looking at a rocket

0:02:08.550,0:02:12.860
blow off so that would be

0:02:10.460,0:02:14.930
you know nothing is nothing it’ll be non

0:02:12.860,0:02:16.460
news item then so if it’s true as you

0:02:14.930,0:02:18.530
mentioned the sisters wall position

0:02:16.460,0:02:20.600
she’s been in the press for the last two

0:02:18.530,0:02:23.980
or three years now for North Korean

0:02:20.600,0:02:27.650
standards to have her be a public

0:02:23.980,0:02:28.460
persona in this system is very

0:02:27.650,0:02:31.790
significant

0:02:28.460,0:02:34.460
so she’s clearly very associated with

0:02:31.790,0:02:37.460
her brother in in running North Korea

0:02:34.460,0:02:38.870
and that’s widely accepted so he’s been

0:02:37.460,0:02:41.600
bringing her in now there’s been some

0:02:38.870,0:02:43.850
argument and discussion what exactly she

0:02:41.600,0:02:45.500
represents is she the power behind the

0:02:43.850,0:02:50.570
throne is she the real brains to all

0:02:45.500,0:02:52.580
this what precisely is she just truly an

0:02:50.570,0:02:54.980
ally of the brother helping and I think

0:02:52.580,0:02:57.680
she sees that that her bread is buttered

0:02:54.980,0:03:00.590
by having him be strong and in control

0:02:57.680,0:03:02.150
so I think that some degree and probably

0:03:00.590,0:03:04.640
vacillates up and down is whether she

0:03:02.150,0:03:07.190
kind of runs the show or bits and pieces

0:03:04.640,0:03:08.720
of the show or she just is a passive

0:03:07.190,0:03:10.820
adviser and trying to help him along the

0:03:08.720,0:03:13.160
way and I’m sure it’s some combination

0:03:10.820,0:03:15.620
of those all of those factors but she

0:03:13.160,0:03:17.660
would be the heir apparent and if he

0:03:15.620,0:03:20.000
does die or is fully mentally

0:03:17.660,0:03:22.400
incapacitated and no longer in control

0:03:20.000,0:03:24.710
of the country she will be the person to

0:03:22.400,0:03:26.810
step in so then it’s a question of how

0:03:24.710,0:03:28.850
it will unfold from there so really I

0:03:26.810,0:03:31.850
would say there’s there’s basically two

0:03:28.850,0:03:33.830
scenarios that you could see one that I

0:03:31.850,0:03:35.720
personally consider them more likely as

0:03:33.830,0:03:39.110
she will immediately she’s already in

0:03:35.720,0:03:40.610
some ways stepped into that breech since

0:03:39.110,0:03:43.610
we don’t know the real condition there

0:03:40.610,0:03:46.130
of the president if I can call him that

0:03:43.610,0:03:48.800
the dictator of North Korea it’s hard to

0:03:46.130,0:03:51.230
say what what how far that has gone and

0:03:48.800,0:03:52.940
if it how real it is at this point but

0:03:51.230,0:03:55.220
there’s also a lot of rumors that she

0:03:52.940,0:03:57.290
was the one that was kind of pushing for

0:03:55.220,0:03:58.850
some of the brutal executions of some of

0:03:57.290,0:04:01.520
these people that the brother got rid of

0:03:58.850,0:04:03.680
as he was consolidating his position as

0:04:01.520,0:04:05.810
dictator of North Korea and if you’ll

0:04:03.680,0:04:07.280
recall one of the guys was executed by

0:04:05.810,0:04:08.960
firing squad

0:04:07.280,0:04:10.910
he was stood up in front of a

0:04:08.960,0:04:12.000
anti-aircraft gun and they shot him from

0:04:10.910,0:04:14.070
close range in there

0:04:12.000,0:04:16.410
anti-aircraft gun which just you know

0:04:14.070,0:04:19.410
turns him basically into a mist that

0:04:16.410,0:04:21.329
floats away on the breeze so they were

0:04:19.410,0:04:23.250
certainly making a political point by

0:04:21.329,0:04:25.020
that form of execution and a lot of

0:04:23.250,0:04:27.270
rumors and discussion out there that the

0:04:25.020,0:04:29.190
sisters behind some of these more brutal

0:04:27.270,0:04:31.800
ideas one of the things I would point

0:04:29.190,0:04:33.960
out about that is is and a lot of people

0:04:31.800,0:04:36.210
don’t focus on this but if you look at

0:04:33.960,0:04:37.860
terrorism for example and these

0:04:36.210,0:04:40.770
political murderers and things like that

0:04:37.860,0:04:43.770
that take place lumping this violence

0:04:40.770,0:04:45.690
all into one big group women actually

0:04:43.770,0:04:47.430
when they they don’t tend to get

0:04:45.690,0:04:49.590
involved in that stuff but when they do

0:04:47.430,0:04:51.960
get involved they tend to be far more

0:04:49.590,0:04:53.970
cruel than the men it’s an interesting

0:04:51.960,0:04:56.070
little aspect some of the terrorists

0:04:53.970,0:04:57.990
you’ll remember this shopping mall in

0:04:56.070,0:04:59.460
Africa they got taken over in the leader

0:04:57.990,0:05:01.860
of this group that was doing it was a

0:04:59.460,0:05:04.919
woman and and some of the real very

0:05:01.860,0:05:06.390
cruel things that she had these people

0:05:04.919,0:05:08.640
do and things that she did personally

0:05:06.390,0:05:09.690
you know executing mothers in front of

0:05:08.640,0:05:12.030
children and children in front of

0:05:09.690,0:05:13.200
mothers where men terraces come in and

0:05:12.030,0:05:16.470
if they want them dead they just shoot

0:05:13.200,0:05:18.210
them and it’s over with so the rumor I

0:05:16.470,0:05:19.860
tend to believe that the sister was

0:05:18.210,0:05:22.470
involved in some of these things because

0:05:19.860,0:05:24.390
that’s not she would view the world so I

0:05:22.470,0:05:26.130
wouldn’t be overly surprised if

0:05:24.390,0:05:27.390
everybody has a healthy respect for this

0:05:26.130,0:05:30.270
woman and they’re a little bit afraid of

0:05:27.390,0:05:33.840
her so as I say my my personal opinion

0:05:30.270,0:05:35.460
is that that plan a would be that if if

0:05:33.840,0:05:37.200
if the brother dies was incapacitated

0:05:35.460,0:05:38.640
she’ll just step in and take control I

0:05:37.200,0:05:40.710
think she’s already got a lot of control

0:05:38.640,0:05:42.410
of course the other option is that she

0:05:40.710,0:05:44.520
spot for it and then if that’s the case

0:05:42.410,0:05:47.280
what that means is they’re gonna start

0:05:44.520,0:05:50.310
shooting in North Korea until somebody’s

0:05:47.280,0:05:52.110
left in charge and you can almost be

0:05:50.310,0:05:54.180
certain of a quiet a little bit of

0:05:52.110,0:05:56.070
bloodbath around the top and they would

0:05:54.180,0:05:57.570
need to kill the sister almost

0:05:56.070,0:05:59.580
immediately because she would just be

0:05:57.570,0:06:01.710
too dangerous to be left alive so as

0:05:59.580,0:06:03.330
long as she’s alive I think she’s the

0:06:01.710,0:06:05.490
frontrunner to take control if the

0:06:03.330,0:06:07.410
brother goes away if they can kill her

0:06:05.490,0:06:09.960
if there’s if there’s groups in

0:06:07.410,0:06:11.780
opposition that want that are that

0:06:09.960,0:06:14.090
capable of killing her

0:06:11.780,0:06:16.190
then then I think you would see the

0:06:14.090,0:06:17.480
bloodbath really take off until like I

0:06:16.190,0:06:20.720
said until one person was left in charge

0:06:17.480,0:06:22.580
but like I said really my personal

0:06:20.720,0:06:24.500
opinions based on South Korean reporting

0:06:22.580,0:06:26.450
there may be nothing there to begin with

0:06:24.500,0:06:28.430
if there is anything to begin with I

0:06:26.450,0:06:30.230
think it would be a fairly by North

0:06:28.430,0:06:32.780
Korean standards peaceful transition to

0:06:30.230,0:06:34.460
the sister and then my third theory when

0:06:32.780,0:06:37.540
it would be the the pandemonium and the

0:06:34.460,0:06:37.540
shoot-’em-up sort of stuff

0:06:40.720,0:06:53.029
[Music]
[/expander_maker]

Share:

More Posts

Send Us A Message