North Korea has splashed the cash in recent months carrying out nuclear tests and missile launches in an escalating military showdown with the USA.
And while the hermit state continues to trumpet about its nuclear might, sources with links to North Korea’s “ruling elite” have revealed a far more precipitous truth.
Two Chinese sources with links to the Kim dynasty have revealed the dictator is actually running out of money, having sped through the inheritance fund left by his father and North Korea’s former leader Kim Jong-il.
Running out of cash has made it harder and harder for Kim Jong-un to control his inner circle, whose faith and loyalty is based more on financial incentive than under previous leaders.
One of the sources told Radio Free Asia (RFA): “Due to Kim Jong-un’s extravagant spending, the slush fund from his father Kim Jong-il is running out.”
He said it “won’t be easy to control North Korea’s high-level executives”, who he compared as being cunning “like raccoons”.
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The source said he had heard officials “worrying” about the lack of funds being sent to Office No. 39 – the secretive hermit state department tasked with raising up to $1 billion years to fund North Korea’s missile programmes.
He said: “I heard them worrying about insufficient funds in Office No. 39 a number of times.
“We can speculate that he spent a lot of money from the number of missile and nuclear weapons tests he carried out.
“Most of the funding for nuclear weapon and missile development is coming from Kim Jong-un’s slush fund.”
The second source told RFA financial concerns had been one of the biggest incentives for North Korea to take part in next month’s Winter Olympics.
With sanctions having a tough effect on the North Korean economy, a good-will trip south of the border could help loosen these regulations and kick-start Kim’s economy.
He said “North Korea’s warm gestures toward South Korea have underlying intentions: to use the Pyongchang Winter Olympics that will be held there from Feb. 9 as a breakthrough for their financial difficulties.
“There will be a warming of relations during the Pyongchang Olympics.
“But if South Korea’s response fails to satisfy Pyongyang, it will ultimately strain North-South ties.”