What’s behind North Korea’s ‘exceptional’ earthquake condolences to Japan?

The Japanese government was taken aback by Kim Jong-un’s surprise sympathy message after the deadly New Year’s Day quake

Analysts say it’s the first time he, or his father, has done anything like it – but there is likely more than just commiseration at play

3-MIN READ3-MIN

Kim Jong-un inspects agricultural machinery in a picture released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency on January 2, the day after the deadly earthquake struck Japan. Photo: KCNA via Reuters

Published: 5:00pm, 8 Jan 2024Updated: 6:36pm, 8 Jan 2024

North Korea’s Kim Jong-un has caught the Japanese government off guard by sending his condolences for the earthquake that struck Japan on New Year’s Day, causing at least 130 deaths.

The leader had never previously sent a personal message of condolence to Japan after a natural disaster, saving such expressions of regret for fellow communist regimes and key strategic partners instead.

Analysts say Tokyo was taken aback by the missive, and is attempting to discern Pyongyang’s motivation.

Police officers search for survivors in Japan’s Ishikawa prefecture on Sunday following the deadly New Year’s Day earthquake. Photo: Kyodo

“The Japanese government was caught completely by surprise by this message and is still trying to understand Kim’s reasoning,” said Toshimitsu Shigemura, a professor at Tokyo’s Waseda University and an authority on North Korea’s ruling family.

The message was conveyed in a letter to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida that arrived on Friday, with Pyongyang’s state-run Korea Central News Agency stating in a report that Kim “sincerely hoped that the people in the affected areas would eradicate the aftermath of earthquakes and restore their stable lives at the earliest date possible”.

Kim addressing Kishida as “Your Excellency” in the letter has also raised eyebrows in Tokyo.