That gangsters distrust each other isn’t news. But that North Korea is warning traders operating in China to watch out for Chinese surveillance seems to be (“North Korea warns traders in China of surveillance threat,” Daily NK, December 23, 2024).
The Daily NK, based in Seol, South Korea, relies on informants across the border to help it report on North Korea.
According to a source in North Korea, the state security bureau at North Korea’s diplomatic mission to China issued instructions on Dec. 7 to major traders operating in Beijing and Shenyang, warning them to protect their personal information. The Ministry of State Security quietly informed these traders that they had become targets of covert investigations by their Chinese counterpart agency, also called the Ministry of State Security….
“The Chinese agency is analyzing not only the traders’ official work but also unofficial orders, project details, phone records, movements, and areas of interest. They’re even trying to access personal bank account balances.”…
“The ministry interprets China’s efforts to monitor and control North Korea’s economic activities as suggesting they might try to recruit traders as spies,” the source said. “The diplomatic mission has instructed its security agents to take all necessary measures to protect the traders.”
Another speculation is that China is trying to “establish systematic control over North Korean trading activities.”
The North Korean government is worried about government surveillance. They should be worried. It’s an annoying, unnerving, oppressive kind of thing. Something for North Korea to keep in mind.
