Anthrax in North Korean defector stokes fears
Country denies it is building chemical weapons, a known violation of international law
WASHINGTON— The reported discovery of anthrax antibodies in a North Korean defector is renewing fears that the regime of Kim Jong Un is developing lethal biological weapons in violation of international law.
A South Korean intelligence officer told the country’s Channel A television that one of at least four soldiers who defected from the North this year had anthrax in their system. Senior defence analyst Shin Jong-woo said the anthrax vaccine is probably given to North Korean soldiers working on biological weapons projects.
Although rare in North America, people can get sick with anthrax if they come in contact with infected animals or contaminated animal products, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Contact with anthrax can cause severe illness and death if not treated, according to the CDC, which noted that anthrax is not contagious like a common cold or flu.
The revelation about the defector comes a week after reports began circulating that North Korea had begun tests to load anthrax onto in- tercontinental ballistic missiles. The Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun, citing intelligence sources in Seoul, has reported that Kim’s regime is conducting heat and pressure resistance tests to see whether anthrax germs can survive the intense heat an intercontinental ballistic missile encounters when it reenters Earth’s atmosphere.
North Korea has denied it is developing chemical weapons, something it has been accused of doing in the past.
The U.S. National Security Strategy released last week by the Trump administration accuses North Korea of conducting research into “chemical and biological weapons” that could be delivered by missile.
North Korea has been accused of using chemical weapons on a smaller scale. Kim Jong Nam, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s older halfbrother and a potential rival, was killed in an attack with a deadly nerve agent at Malaysia’s international airport in February.
The anthrax reports have kicked up a storm in South Korea. On Sunday, the office of South Korean President Park Soo-hun confirmed it had imported anthrax vaccines this year, but denied claims that it was vaccinating top officials against the disease.
The controversy prompted a petition drive in South Korea demanding that all citizens be vaccinated. Spokesperson Cheong Wa-dae attempted to tamp down the dispute, saying the government imported 350 doses of anthrax vaccines on Nov. 2 and stored them in a national army hospital. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also have anthrax vaccines for 1,000 patients prepared in case of biological terrorist attacks, the government said. The heightened concerns about anthrax come just six weeks before South Korea hosts the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Sanctions and bellicose rhetoric continue to dominate U.S.-North Korean relations. Last week, the United Nations imposed another round of sanctions on North Korea in reaction to the country’s repeated testing of intercontinental ballistic missiles, including the first one with a range that can reach Washington, D.C.
Kim says his goal is to develop a nuclear-armed missile that can hit the U.S. as a deterrent against an American invasion seeking to overthrow him.