North Korea may send an army of undercover state security agents to the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
“The group that [North Korea] will send to the Games will definitely include state security agents,” Lee Ji Young told the Daily NK. “It has always been that way, and they will do it this time as well.”
North Korea is planning to send a few hundred people — including cheerleaders, cultural performers, athletes, coaches and reporters — to the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.
“A considerable number of supporters including medical staff, cheer squad members, reporters, and other staff will actually be state security agents,” said Seo Jae Pyong, head of the Association of North Korean Defectors. He suggested that at least one in every 10 participants will be state security agents.
There is a possibility that these agents will be North Korean journalists or members of the so-called “army of beauties” — the cheerleaders said to be handpicked for their loyalty to North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.
The state security agents are tasked with monitoring participants to prevent ideological influence, defections or unauthorized interactions with foreign press.
North Korean athletes reportedly go through ideological training before international events, and expectations with regard to their behavior are clearly presented. The security agents are sent to ensure that all North Korean participants at the Winter Olympics uphold the regime’s strict expectations.
Likely due to the presence of state security forces and the ever-present threat of severe punishments for family at home, there have been no known defections at an Olympic event by North Korean participants.
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