Thae Yong-ho was North Korea's deputy ambassador to the United Kingdom, prior to defecting with his family to South Korea in 2016.
12 Facts About Thae Yong-ho
2.
Thae Yong-ho was able to escape with his wife and children, but his brother and sister were left behind in North Korea.
3.
Thae Yong-ho stated that he defected as he did not want his children who were used to a life of freedom in Britain to live a life of oppression in North Korea.
4.
Thae Yong-ho was one of North Korea's elite, regarded by observers as a sophisticated diplomat who was one of the "best and brightest" in the country.
5.
Thae Yong-ho worked as an adviser at the Institute for National Security Strategy since early 2017, an organization affiliated with the National Intelligence Service, and he resigned from the job out of personal will in May 2018.
6.
Thae Yong-ho testified before the US House Foreign Relations Committee in November 2017.
7.
Thae Yong-ho advised the use of soft power, such as disseminating outside information, to weaken Kim Jong Un's rule.
8.
Thae Yong-ho stated that the North Korean regime wants nuclear weapons in order to intimidate the US into withdrawing its military forces from South Korea, thus weakening South Korea.
9.
Thae Yong-ho equated the North Korean regime to that of apartheid-era South Africa and Nazi Germany.
10.
In May 2018, Thae Yong-ho published Cryptography From the Third-Floor Secretariat, a memoir of his life as a North Korean diplomat.
11.
In February 2020, Thae Yong-ho ran for a seat representing the Gangnam District of Seoul in the National Assembly in South Korea's parliamentary elections in April 2020.
12.
In May 2020, Thae Yong-ho apologised for claiming Kim Jong Un was probably so ill he could not stand during a three week period when Kim was not seen in public.