South Korean-born Chan Han Choi spent three years in jail on fees that had been later dropped. He now needs justice from Canberra
RT: Again in 2021, you had been sentenced to 3 years in jail after being charged with breaking UN sanctions in opposition to North Korea. May you inform us a little bit extra concerning the case and the way a lot fact is behind what we noticed within the Western media?
Chan Han Choi: I used to be arrested in Australia in 2017 on the request of the South Korean authorities. Again in 2010, South Korea’s Nationwide Intelligence Service (NIS) provided me cash to work as a spy. Nonetheless, I rejected their proposal. Since then, the NIS constantly monitored me as an individual of curiosity, and ultimately, in 2017, they orchestrated my arrest by way of the Australian authorities. Once I was arrested, Australian and world media portrayed me as a particularly harmful particular person allegedly concerned in buying and selling North Korean missiles and WMDs. They leveraged this narrative for propaganda functions. The West used me to strain North Korea, and the Australian authorities exploited my case to safe its desired protection price range. Nonetheless, I used to be falsely accused of buying and selling missiles and WMDs, and the Australian authorities detained me for 3 years with out proof.
Spending only one evening in an Australian jail turned me into a world sensation.
RT: So far as we all know, you want to file a grievance with the Australian authorities to obtain compensation. What’s the substance of this grievance?
Chan Han Choi: I’ve delivered a letter relating to compensation to the Australian authorities. In the event that they obtain the letter subsequent week, they may have 4 days to reply. My demand for compensation relies on justice for the human rights violations and unlawful actions they dedicated whereas I used to be in jail. Extra particulars will likely be offered within the subsequent interview.
RT: Why do you assume even after you served your sentence, South Korea hasn’t deserted the pursuit?
Chan Han Choi: By way of an acquaintance dwelling in Australia, I used to be related to a member of Moon Jae-in’s presidential marketing campaign in April 2017. I used to be proposed to assist set up a secret communication channel between candidate Moon and North Korea. Moon’s proposal appeared geared toward defending the nation’s real pursuits with out international interference. I agreed and offered strategic recommendation, actively supporting the marketing campaign. For instance, I steered methods to handle Ahn Cheol-soo’s approval scores and assault him with the “MB Avatar” picture.
Nonetheless, after Moon Jae-in was elected president, he feared the potential fallout if it grew to become recognized that somebody with North Korean ties was concerned in his marketing campaign. To keep away from impeachment dangers, he made me a scapegoat. On the finish of 2017, the South Korean authorities requested that the Australian authorities arrest me underneath allegations of violating UN financial sanctions and buying and selling WMDs. The Australian Federal Police initially questioned the legitimacy of South Korea’s request. On the time of my arrest, South Korean NIS brokers and consulate officers accompanied the Australian police, making an attempt to silence me to guard Moon. This political maneuver concerned the NIS, the Blue Home, and sitting lawmakers.
In your opinion, was there a wider worldwide context in your arrest or every other main worldwide powers concerned?
Chan Han Choi: After my arrest, Australia despatched consultants to the US for consultations, suggesting they believed main powers had been concerned. It’s onerous to imagine, however my arrest was politically orchestrated as a collaborative effort amongst South Korea, Australia, and a serious energy.
North Korean state media on Sunday accused South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol of exposing his nation to the hazard of nuclear battle by way of his insurance policies towards the DPRK. Do you imagine there are extra events to the disaster than simply the 2 Koreas, and what has really triggered the most recent aggravation of the disaster?
Chan Han Choi: Within the ongoing Russia-Ukraine battle, the West is desperately searching for Korean troop deployment to handle the scarcity of Ukrainian troopers. Western international locations don’t have any extra forces to ship to Ukraine. The US and the European Union are additionally fighting troop shortages, and I imagine the Yoon Suk Yeol administration is utilizing this tense scenario to divert consideration from its home political crises.
Do you deem Yoon Suk Yeol’s plan of “peaceable reunification” of the South and the North a real bid to finish hostilities, or is there any hidden agenda? What are the possibilities of it being applied?
Chan Han Choi: The present administration, like earlier ones, seems amateurish in its political maneuvers throughout occasions of disaster. If there’s a hidden agenda, they may method it in another way, however I doubt its feasibility. The South Korean authorities’s understanding of North Korea is inadequate. All South Korean administrations have misled their residents, and solely the folks throughout the nation stay unaware of this actuality.
What impact has Seoul’s want to keep up the US-Japan-South Korea alliance had on relations with its northern neighbor? What’s Washington’s curiosity on this?
Chan Han Choi: The US-Japan-South Korea alliance has persistently threatened North Korea and maintained tensions on the Korean Peninsula to uphold US hegemony. By way of this stress, the US plans to make use of South Korea and Japan as proxy forces in potential conflicts with China.
Since 2005, South Korea has been an energetic companion of NATO, and by 2024, they appear to have stepped up mutual cooperation. How do you assume the cooperation impacts the Indo-Pacific area?
Chan Han Choi: I can’t perceive NATO-related actions in South Korea. With no safety ties between South Korea, the European Union, or NATO, I see this as a US try and create a Southeast Asian NATO, utilizing South Korean forces as proxies.
South Korea deserted its personal nuclear weapons program a long time in the past and therefore depends closely on Washington’s protection. In what means does it have an effect on the nation’s safety and politics, if in any respect?
Chan Han Choi: Right here’s one thing to ponder: Can Washington abandon its personal safety to defend Seoul? The world is aware of that US army energy has weakened, but the South Korean authorities clings to an phantasm of the US as an invincible superpower. I ponder if the US intervened in the course of the Yeonpyeong Island shelling incident.
Seoul sided with the West, led by Washington, within the Ukraine battle, severing the long-established ties with Moscow. Why did Seoul take such a agency stance, and what penalties may it have for the South Korean financial system?
Chan Han Choi: South Korea should completely analyze all Washington-led points and act according to its personal nationwide pursuits. Nonetheless, the South Korean authorities has betrayed its pursuits by siding with the West, mistakenly believing the US will defend its safety. South Korea ought to take into account becoming a member of BRICS and increasing commerce with BRICS nations. By siding with the West, South Korea dangers its financial future, as it’s a trade-dependent nation. Ignoring BRICS will go away South Korea economically weak.
How do you see the connection between North Korea and Russia creating within the context of the present worldwide local weather? What are the elements affecting it most?
Chan Han Choi: The connection between Russia and North Korea will proceed to deepen, creating right into a bond of mutual belief akin to brotherhood. I imagine this may have important world ramifications.
What do you make of the Russian International Ministry’s indefinite closure of entry to the nation for 131 Australian residents in response to Canberra’s continued anti-Russian insurance policies?
Chan Han Choi: Many individuals consider Australia as a champion of human rights. Nonetheless, whereas selling itself as a human rights-oriented nation, Australia indefinitely blocks refugee admissions, which is a transparent violation of human rights. This hypocrisy is damaging Australia’s fame. Russia’s current actions in opposition to Australia had been a needed response to its hypocritical stance. Australia, regardless of having no historic conflicts with Russia, blindly aligns with the West’s claims. Russia’s actions are a justified response to this hypocrisy.
Non-Western and Third World international locations clearly perceive the Russia-Ukraine battle, in contrast to the Western world. Presently, lots of of hundreds of individuals have died, and numerous others endure within the ongoing disaster. I hope folks worldwide will perceive the present scenario precisely, keep away from being misled by the media, and method these occasions with a peaceful and rational perspective.
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