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Kim Jong Un Speaks Publicly For The First Time

Hannah Madans |
April 15, 2012 | 1:42 p.m. PDT

Executive Producer

courtesy Creative Commons
courtesy Creative Commons
Kim Jung Un spoke publicly for the first time Sunday in a ceremony for his deceased grandfather, Kim Il-sung. He spoke in the capitol of Pyongyang.

The speech was delivered in front of thousands, reports The Daily Beast.

The speech came just a few days after a failed missile launch that ended with the rocket falling to pieces over the Yellow Sea.

Kim portrayed himself as a strong military chief who was unafraid of foreign powers.

The speech made it clear that the military will continue to have a large role in running the country.

Yahoo News reported on the speech:

Outside analysts have raised worries about how the new leader, who has been seen but not publicly heard since taking over after Kim Jong Il's death, would govern a country that is building a nuclear weapons program and has previously threatened Seoul and Washington with war.

Kim Jong Un said the era when nuclear arms could be used to threaten and blackmail his country was "forever over."

He said his country had built a "mighty military" capable of both offense and defense in any type of modern warfare

"Superiority in military technology is no longer monopolized by imperialists," he said.

The United States and other countries had questioned whether there would be a smooth transition of power in North Korea when Pyongyang announced in mid-March that it would launch a long-range rocket despite a February deal with the U.S. in which it promised a moratorium on nuclear and missile testing in return for food aid, said one North Korea expert.
Kim Jong Un's speech Sunday was "an expression of confidence," said the analyst, Kim Yeon-su of Korea National Defense University. "Kim Jong Un is trying to dispel lingering doubts about his grip on power."

By trumpeting the might of his country's military in his first public speech, Kim Jong Un is also sending a strong message that he sees "himself as more of a military leader than a civilian one," Kim Yeon-su said.



 

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