19
Dec
China has, in recent months, been pressing North Korea to consider adopting a Chinese-style ‘reform and opening up’ policy.
On recent visits to China, Kim Jong-il and other North Korean officials have been taken on tours of factories and special economic zones, with officials saying they were keen to learn how to implement reforms back home.
But following Kim Jong-il’s death, any likelihood of that appears dim, said analysts, with the North now likely to focus on ensuring internal political stability.
Another Chinese Characters contributor, Ananth Krishnan, weighs in on Kim’s death for The Hindu, focusing on NK leadership transition’s implications for and concerns in the PRC.
