The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, or DPRK, is better known to most people as North Korea. The country has been causing problems for the United States and neighboring nations for a very long time. It was almost exactly 60 years ago that the Korean War ended. This was a war fought to stop the North Korean Stalinist regime from taking over South Korea. Although North Korea was not totally defeated, a permanent cease-fire was put into place by President Eisenhower. This created a demilitarized zone, or DMZ, between the countries where tensions are almost constantly high. The United States even maintains a troop presence in South Korea and along the DMZ.
The leader of North Korea has become an infamous figure around the world. The Stalinist country has been ruled by a monarchy of dictators where the mantle of leadership is passed from father to son. The leaders of the country are described to the people as being almost supernatural and godlike. The current leader is Kim Jong Un. He was educated in Western schools but rules just like his predecessors. This means he maintains a brutal dictatorship where the country suffers while he makes grand declarations from a massive compound. North Korea is a hellish place to live. The people are totally isolated from the outside world. The country relies on foreign aid to prevent mass starvation. Kim Jong Un even has people he perceives as dissidents killed or imprisoned in work camps for decades.
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has actually spoken out about North Korea and the larger Asian region. He stated in an interview that he did not see a reason to prevent countries like South Korea and Japan from developing stockpiles of nuclear weapons. This goes directly against the United States nonproliferation policy that has been in place for decades. It also goes against the worldwide goal of preventing new nuclear weapons from being developed by countries. Trump seemed to take an isolationist and hands-off approach to Asia and the broader surrounding regions of the world.
This prompted the publication of an editorial in the state-run online media outlet DPRK Today in North Korea. The editorial was written by the ruling regime and likely approved directly by Kim Jong Un himself. The editorial makes it very clear that Stalinist North Korea believes Donald Trump would be a wise choice for president. The country and Kim Jong Un basically just endorsed Donald Trump for president of the United States. The article goes on to insult Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton. It is clear that North Korean officials believe a Trump presidency would hurt South Korea and potentially open up new economic channels for the Stalinist dictatorship.
Trump has actually made a statement that he would change some United States policies towards South Korea. He has hinted that he would like to see less involvement with the county. Trump has described bizarre policies on imports and exports that would likely start a trade war with Asia. He has even declared that he would like to charge South Korea money. Those moves would actually weaken South Korea and change the decades of goodwill the country has had with the United States.
The endorsement from North Korea is just the latest in a long string of bad actors who seem to love the idea of a Donald Trump presidency. Trump has garnered the fervent support of the Ku Klux Klan, white nationalists and neo-Nazi organizations around the country. He has received praise from the brutal dictator Vladimir Putin of Russia. Trump has not yet commented on the editorial from North Korea.