North Koreas' civilian administration, which is more reform minded and follows Kim Il-sung's more cooperative policies, and who has won the backing of the United States and China, albeit for different reasons, has taken the leading role in policy making. The military has been cornered domestically and internationally, and who is surely apprehensive about a deal that would give up missiles for hard currency. We must take North Korea's embattled military into account when looking at the real meaning of Kim Gwang-jin's statement. In order to reverse the tide, North Korea's military must escalate tensions between North and South Korea in order to outmaneuver North Korea's civilian administration. However, North Korean military authorities seem to lose the ability to think clearly.
Nothing is more dangerous than an embattled military.
The prevailing sentiment in North Korea's military must be quite similar to that the Japanese military just before Pearl Harbor. The current policy of the United States, Japanese and South Korean governments is to seek a soft-landing for North Korea through a package of economic benefits. However, it is not advisable for any foreign country to become involved while a serious split exists in North Korea's power structure. What we will have to do is prepare for the likely explosion and then see.