Full Committee Hearing

North Korea: Illicit Activity Funding the Regime

Date: April 25, 2006
Time: 2:30pm
Location: Senate Dirksen Building, SD-342
Agenda:

 

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North Korea is under the iron grip of Kim Jong-il and his ruling elite. From the little we know about this secretive dictatorship, it’s clear that there is little the regime won’t do in order to increase its stranglehold of power and its threat to the world. A significant source of income that is keeping this malevolent empire solvent derives from a vast criminal network involved in counterfeiting currency and commercial goods, illegal drug production and trafficking, and slave labor. The purpose of this hearing is to expose these illicit activities to public scrutiny and connect the dots between this “moonshine” economy and the regime’s ability to continue weapon proliferation while avoiding the full consequences of sanctions and isolationism.

Witnesses

Panel 1

Mr.

Peter

Prahar

Director, Asia, Africa and Europe Programs, Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs

Department of State

Panel 1

Michael

Merritt

Deputy Assistant Director, Office of Investigations

U.S. Secret Service

Panel 2

Mr.

Kim

Seong-Min

Driector

Free North Korea Radio

Panel 2

Dr.

David

Asher

Institute for Defense Analyses

Panel 2

Mr.

Chuck

Downs

Author of Over the Line: North Korea’s Negotiating Strategy

Panel 2

Mr.

Marcus

Noland

Institute for International Economics