Ri Il-kyu, a former counselor at the North's embassy to Cuba, sought asylum with his wife and children last November.
Ri, 52, who studied Spanish at Pyongyang University of Foreign Studies, served in North Korea's diplomatic mission in Cuba for nearly a decade between 2011 and 2016 and then again from 2019 to 2023 after joining the North's foreign ministry in 1999. In July 2013, he reportedly received a commendation from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in recognition of his service in Cuba.
In his interview with Korea's largest newspaper the Chosun Ilbo, he was quoted as saying that he decided to defect "out of frustration and anger" over "unfair" treatment from his supervisor at the ministry. He then became more determined to defect after his request for medical treatment in Mexico was denied when he was unable to get proper care in the Caribbean country.
Ri's main assignments during his latest stints in Havana were to prevent South Korea from re-establishing diplomatic ties with Cuba, a longtime North Korean ally. However, his futile efforts ended in vain, as the two countries reached an agreement to restore diplomatic relations early this year.
Ri is the highest-ranking defector since former North Korean deputy ambassador to the U.K. Thae Yong-ho who fled to Seoul in 2016 and later became a lawmaker here.
As of March this year, the number of North Korean defectors in South Korea is 34,121, with 196 newly arrived in Seoul last year.
