The Daily NK reports that drugs manufactured in North Korea are making their way into Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asia by way of Chinese brokers and with North Korea’s Escort Command overseeing sales and distribution. The Escort Command is the agency responsible for the protection of Kim Jong Eun and his family. According to a former employee of North Korea’s Ministry of State Security, the Escort Command is in command of managing the illicit drug trade started by Kim Jong Il to bolster his personal slush fund. In order for Kim Jong Eun to maintain his regime’s monopoly over the drug trade and boost foreign currency earnings, the Ministry of State Security has been charged with cracking down on any drug production or sales operating outside of state-sanctioned channels.
The majority of drugs produced in North Korea come from the Hungnam Pharmaceutical Factory in South Hamkyung Province. Allegedly 60% of Hungnam’s population is involved in drug manufacturing. The Daily NK’s source reveled that drugs produced in North Korea are “cheap and of reasonable quality.” They are popular in China and word has reached international brokers who are now importing them into South Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia.
