Former North Korean diplomat in Cuba trafficked cigars with China.

Ri Il Kyu, a 52-year-old former North Korean diplomat who was in charge of political affairs at the North Korean Embassy in Havana until he escaped to South Korea from the island in November, admits that he was involved in the illegal trafficking of cigars to China to support his family.

With a salary of 500 dollars a month that wasn't enough in Cuba, Ri managed to smuggle Cuban cigars to China to supplement his income in Havana, as he reported in a recent interview with the British network BBC, although he did not provide further details on the modus operandi of his operations or how the cigars came into his possession.

Ri Il Kyu is the highest-ranking official to have defected from North Korea since 2016.

In his first interview with a Western media outlet, Ri revealed details about Kim Jong-un's regime and North Korea's complex international relations.

Ri admitted that when he met Kim Jong Un, he was "shaking with nerves," but he claims that after the seven meetings he had with the North Korean leader, he can describe him, at least in appearance, as someone "smiling and in a good mood."

However, Ri has no doubt that Kim is capable of anything to ensure his survival, even at the cost of his own people. "He could have been a wonderful person and a father, but they shaped him into a monster," he said.

North Korea and Donald Trump

According to Ri, North Korea sees the possible return of Donald Trump to the White House as "a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity" to negotiate regarding its nuclear program, despite the fact that talks between Trump and Kim failed in 2019.

Ri assures that any attempt to freeze North Korea's nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions would be a "one hundred percent deception" and would only strengthen the regime.

The erosion of loyalty towards Kim Jong-un

Ri stated that genuine loyalty towards Kim Jong-un has significantly decreased in North Korea, with a population increasingly aware of the differences between their country and the prosperous South.

Although the regime has intensified laws against the consumption of South Korean content, Ri does not believe that this can stop the growing discontent of the North Korean population.

The dangerous escape

It was in mid-July that the escape of Ri Il-gyu from Havana to South Korea was reported, although the flight with his wife and son took place at the beginning of November 2023.

When asked about the reasons that led him to consider desertion as an option, the former diplomat said that there were several factors, including the unfair evaluation of his efforts as well as the demand for bribes by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of his country.

Additionally, both their parents and in-laws had passed away in North Korea and they had no immediate family who could be victims of reprisals.

The last straw was when he asked for permission to go to Mexico to receive medical treatment that was not accessible in Cuba, and it was denied.

The former diplomat stated that in mid-2023 he seriously considered "the possibility of defecting," and that he lost seven kilograms in three months due to pure stress. Finally, six hours before the escape, he told his wife and son that they would be changing countries.

Ri Il-gyu has not implicated any entity from the island in his escape so far, although it is impossible to believe that there was no participation from Cubans in his escape plan.

Among Ri's functions at the embassy was to prevent South Korea and Cuba from establishing diplomatic relations. Interestingly, just three months later, in February of this year, the South Korean nation and the Cuban Government restored diplomatic relations, and they are currently in the process of opening embassies in both nations.

Ri joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of North Korea in 1999 and received praise from Kim Jong-un for successfully negotiating with Panama to lift the detention of a North Korean ship that was caught transporting weapons from Cuba in 2013.