Patterns of Impunity: Human Rights in North Korea and the Role of the U.S. Special Envoy
2021-06-24 16:00 - 17:00 (America/New_York) | Zoom, United States
Ambassador Robert King will be featuring his latest book, “Patterns of Impunity: Human Rights in North Korea and the Role of the U.S. Special Envoy.” Published by the Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Center, Freeman Spogli Institute, Stanford University, Ambassador King’s book is a captivating account of his efforts to integrate human rights within U.S. policy with North Korea. The book also provides unique insights into the creation of the UN Commission of Inquiry on human rights in North Korea as well as obstacles to upholding internationally accepted human rights standards and the challenges to providing humanitarian assistance to North Korea.
The event will be open to the press, and on-the-record. Please click here to RSVP.
The Zoom credentials will be sent to you shortly before the program.
Please email Rosa Park, HRNK Director of Programs and Editor, at rosapark@hrnk.org if you have any questions or concerns.

“Human Rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea: The Role of the United Nations”
2021-07-01 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom, United States
Human Rights in the Democratic Republic of Korea: The Role of the United Nations” is HRNK’s 50th report in our 20-year history. This is even more meaningful as David Hawk’s “Hidden Gulag” (2003) was the first report published by HRNK. In his latest report, Hawk details efforts by many UN member states and by the UN’s committees, projects and procedures to promote and protect human rights in the DPRK. The report highlights North Korea’s shifts in its approach to human rights before and after the February 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry report. In conclusion, while following the collapse of the Hanoi Summit and the outbreak of the COVID epidemic, North Korea is currently in an extreme “anti-reform” and “anti-opening” phase. This HRNK report contends that recommendations the United Nations could make to the DPRK may provide a roadmap complete with specific steps for North Korea to become a more “normal” country.
The event will be open to the press, and on-the-record. Please click on the button above or click here to RSVP.

Never Forgotten: South Korean POWs Still Held in North Korea
2021-07-13 12:30 - 14:00 | Zoom, United States
Featuring:
Family Members of ROK POWs
Colonel David Maxwell
Board Member, HRNK
Senior Fellow, Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Colonel (RET), U.S. Army
Amanda Mortwedt Oh
Human Rights Attorney, HRNK
Rosa Park
Director of Programs and Editor, HRNK
Greg Scarlatoiu
Executive Director, HRNK
Fredrick (Skip) Vincenzo
Visiting Senior US Naval Special Warfare Fellow, Atlantic Council
HRNK will feature a discussion on the fate of South Korean POWs whom North Korea never returned to their hometowns and families after the July 27, 1953 armistice. Subjected to forced labor and relegated to a very low “Category 43” Songbun status for almost seven decades, dozens of them are still being held captive in the North to this day. HRNK’s Greg Scarlatoiu, Amanda Mortwedt Oh, and Rosa Park will be joined by HRNK Board Member U.S. Army COL (RET) David Maxwell (Foundation for the Defense of Democracies) and U.S. Navy SEAL Commander (RET) Frederick (Skip) Vincenzo (Atlantic Council), together with family members of ROK POWs held in the North.
Please click here to RSVP.
The Zoom credentials will be sent to you shortly before the program.
Please email Rosa Park, HRNK Director of Programs and Editor, at rosapark@hrnk.org if you have any questions or concerns.

North Korea’s Long-term Prison-Labor Facility Kyo-hwa-so No. 8, Sŭngho-ri (승호리) - Update
2021-07-22 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom, United States
HRNK will be featuring the latest report under a long-term project employing satellite imagery analysis and former political prisoner testimony to shed light on human suffering in North Korea’s prison camps.
The event will be open to the press, and on-the-record. Please click here to RSVP.
The Zoom credentials will be sent to you shortly before the program.
Please email Rosa Park, HRNK Director of Programs and Editor, at rosapark@hrnk.org if you have any questions or concerns.

An Overview of the UN Special Rapporteur's Role and Mandate
2021-10-26 15:00 - 16:30 | DACOR Bacon House 1801 F St, NW, Washington DC 20006, United States
Featuring:
The Honorable Tomás Ojea Quintana
Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
Moderated by:
Greg Scarlatoiu
Executive Director, HRNK
Mr. Tomás Ojea Quintana was appointed Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic Republic of Korea by the Human Rights Council in 2016.
Mr. Ojea Quintana is a lawyer from Argentina working in the field of criminal law, human rights and public interest, representing NGOs and other groups in different cases, including child abduction by the military regime, sexual abuses by members of the church, and business criminal liability for human rights abuses. He is currently the attorney of a universal jurisdiction case on the abuses against Rohingyas.
He served as the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar from 2008 to 2014, and previously as Consultant for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Bolivia. He also worked as a lawyer at the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (OAS). He is a consultant for the Parliament of Argentina, and has worked as an adviser to government agencies on human rights and security issues.
This is Mr. Quintana’s second and final visit to Washington, D.C. during his mandate as Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the DPRK.
Please email Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, at executive.director@hrnk.org if you have any questions or concerns.

North Korea’s Long-term Prison-Labor Facility Kyo-hwa-so No. 3, T'osŏng-ni (토성리)
2021-11-03 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom
HRNK will be featuring its latest report under a long-term project employing satellite imagery analysis and former political prisoner testimony to shed light on human suffering in North Korea’s prison camps.
The report launch will be conducted virtually, via Zoom. Login information will be shared with confirmed participants the day prior to the event.
The event will be open to the press and on-the-record.
Please email Raymond Ha, HRNK Director of Operations and Research, at raymond.ha@hrnk.org if you have any questions or concerns.

North Korea’s Political Prison Camp Kwan-li-so No. 14: Update 1
2021-12-22 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom

Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity in North Korean Detention Centers
2022-03-04 09:00 - 17:30 | DACOR Bacon House 1801 F St, NW, Washington, DC 20006, 1801 F St, NW, Washington DC, WA, 20006, United States
Dear Friend of HRNK and IBA,
We invite you to a Hearing in connection with an Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity in North Korean Detention Centers that is being led by HRNK and the IBA. The Hearing, which will be held on March 4, 2022, from 09:00 to 17:30 (EST), will feature (1) in-person testimony from survivors of North Korean detention centers, and (2) expert testimony on command-and-control structures in the Kim regime, satellite images of detention centers, etc. The goal of the Hearing is to determine culpability for alleged crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute, ranging from actors at the highest level of the regime (i.e., Kim Jong-un), to low-level guards who carry out many of the worst human rights abuses.
Four renowned international jurists – who, together, have presided over the most consequential international criminal tribunals since the Nuremberg trials – will preside over the March 4th Hearing:
1. Navi Pillay (Chair) is a South African jurist and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. During her UN tenure, Judge Pillay appointed Justice Michael Kirby to conduct the landmark UN Commission of Inquiry (2014) on human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. She also served as President of the Rwanda Tribunal and as a judge on the International Criminal Court (ICC).
2. Silvia Fernández de Gurmendi served as the former President of the ICC and currently serves as the President of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC (2021-2023).
3. Wolfgang Schomburg served as Germany’s first judge on the Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda Tribunals.
4. Dame Silvia Cartwright is the former Governor-General of New Zealand and served as an international judge on the Cambodia Tribunal.
The Hearing will be conducted in-person at HRNK’s home, the DACOR Bacon House, 1801 F Street, NW, Washington, DC, and virtually, via Zoom. Those participating in person will have to present a form of picture ID and proof of COVID vaccination in order to access the building. All participants are required to wear masks inside the building. For security reasons, login information will be shared with confirmed virtual participants the day prior to the event. Please click here to RSVP.
Thank you for your attention and kind consideration.
Sincerely,
Greg Scarlatoiu, Executive Director, HRNK
Michael Maya, Director, IBA-North America

Army of the Indoctrinated: The Suryong, the Soldier, and Information in the KPA
2022-04-26 18:00 - 19:00 | Zoom
HRNK will be featuring Army of the Indoctrinated: The Suryong, the Soldier, and Information in the KPA by George Hutchinson, the latest report in an ongoing project to examine North Korea’s information environment.
The report launch will be conducted virtually, via Zoom. Login information will be shared with confirmed participants the day prior to the event.
The event will be open to the press and on-the-record.
Please email Raymond Ha, HRNK Director of Operations and Research, at raymond.ha@hrnk.org if you have any questions or concerns.

Avoiding Scrutiny and Monitoring: North Korea's Protectors at the UN
2022-06-02 12:00 - 14:00 | DACOR Bacon House 1801 F St, NW, Washington DC 20006, United States
Moderated by HRNK Co-Chair Emeritus Roberta Cohen
Presenters:
Dr. Rana Siu Inboden
Adjunct Assistant Professor, LBJ School of Public Affairs
Distinguished Scholar, Strauss Center for International Security and Law
North Korea and Authoritarian Collaboration in the United Nations: The Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review Process
The report Dr. Inboden will feature examines ways that North Korea benefits from protection in the UN human rights system. In particular, it examines patterns where other authoritarian countries shield North Korea from human rights criticism during the UN’s Universal Periodic Review process by offering praise for the North Korean government, even in the face of severe human rights violations. It shows that jointly North Korea and other countries, such as China, blunt the effectiveness of external human rights scrutiny and monitoring. The North Korean regime and its allies frequently band together in multilateral bodies to shield each other from international human rights pressure. This is particularly evident during the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR). During all three of North Korea’s UPR sessions before the Human Rights Council (HRC), a number of its backers not only defended it but even applauded North Korea’s record. The most active countries shielding North Korea were China, Cuba, and Venezuela, but they were also joined by Syria, Belarus, Russia, Vietnam, Iran, and Burundi.
Greg Scarlatoiu
Executive Director, HRNK
North Korea and Authoritarian Collaboration in the United Nations: The ECOSOC NGO Committee
The report Executive Director Scarlatoiu will feature examines the role of the ECOSOC NGO Committee as “gatekeeper” of international civil society access, based on HRNK’s direct experience with the process. On April 17, 2018, the 54 member UN Economic and Social Council took action on a resolution to grant UN consultative status to the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK). The resolution passed with 29 votes in favor, 6 against, and 13 abstentions. Six ECOSOC member states were absent. Belarus, China, Russian Federation, South Africa, Venezuela and Vietnam voted against. This victory for the North Korean human rights cause was the result of a long and grueling struggle to overcome opposition by UN ECOSOC NGO Committee protectors of North Korea. Previously, ECOSOC NGO Committee members Burundi, China, Cuba, Iran, Nicaragua, Pakistan, the Russian Federation, South Africa, and Venezuela had voted against granting HRNK consultative status.

Never Forgotten: South Korean POWs Held in North Korea
2022-06-09 14:00 - 16:00 | DACOR Bacon House 1801 F St, NW, Washington DC 20006, United States
This event will begin with a screening of the documentary Abandoned Heroes No. 43 from 2:00 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.
The screening will be followed by a panel discussion, featuring:
Mr. Seon-Woo Lee
POW in North Korea from 1953 to 2006, when he escaped to South Korea
Lt. Gen. Wallace “Chip” Gregson, Jr. (USMC, Retired)
President, WC Gregson & Associates
Former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs
Ms. Hee-Eun Kim
Founder, President & CEO, Center for Asia Pacific Strategy (CAPS)
Col. David Maxwell (U.S. Army, Retired)
Board Member, HRNK
Senior Fellow, Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD)
Dr. Bruce E. Bechtol Jr. (USMC, Retired)
Professor, Department of Security Studies and Criminal Justice, Angelo State University
Remarks by the speakers will be followed by a Q&A session. The panel discussion will be moderated by HRNK Executive Director Greg Scarlatoiu.

Report Findings: Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity in North Korean Detention Centers
2022-06-27 09:30 - 11:00 | National Press Club, First Amendment Lounge, Washington, D.C., United States
Description:
On June 27, 2022, following an exhaustive multi-year Inquiry, HRNK and the International Bar Association (IBA) launched in Washington, D.C. a report entitled “Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity in North Korean Detention Centers.” The Inquiry, chaired by four renowned international judges–including the former Presidents of the ICC and the Rwanda Tribunal, as well as judges who served on the criminal tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Cambodia–concluded that crimes against humanity have been, and continue to be, committed in North Korea’s pre-trial detention centers, holding centers, and labor training camps.
Remarks by:
Navanethem ‘Navi’ Pillay (Inquiry Chair)
– Former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights; Former President, Rwanda Tribunal; Former Judge, International Criminal Court (ICC)
Silvia Fernández de Gurmendi
– President, Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC; Former President, ICC
Wolfgang Schomburg
– Former Judge, Rwanda and Former Yugoslavia Tribunals
Greg Kehoe
– Former Co-Chair, IBA War Crimes Committee; Partner, Greenberg Traurig
Nawi Ukabiala
– Pro Bono Counsel, Debevoise & Plimpton, LLP
Roberta Cohen
– Former Co-Chair, HRNK; Former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights
David Tolbert
– Former Deputy Chief Prosecutor, Former Yugoslavia Tribunal; Former Exec. Dir., Int’l Center for Transitional Justice

The Rangoon Bombing Terrorist, Kang Min-chol
2022-08-12 10:00 - 11:00 | Zoom, United States
On October 9, 1983, North Korean agents planted a bomb at the Martyrs’ Mausolem in Rangoon, Burma, attempting to assassinate the fifth president of South Korea, Chun Doo-hwan. Although Chun was unharmed due to an act of providence, fourteen South Korean presidential advisers, journalists, and security officials were killed, together with four Burmese nationals. One out of three North Korean assassins survived. This is the story of Kang Min-chol, the lone survivor of the 1983 North Korean terrorist hit squad.
The report launch will be conducted virtually, via Zoom, at 10:00 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time (ET) on Friday, August 12.
Following a presentation by Amb. Ra Jong-yil, the event will feature remarks by retired Lt. General Chun In-bum, ROKA, who was at the scene of the attack in 1983 as a first lieutenant, and Robert Collins, HRNK Author and Senior Adviser.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, will moderate the discussion.
Zoom access information will be shared with registered participants on Thursday, August 11. The event will be open to the press and on-the-record.

IPCNKR 18th General Meeting
2022-09-15 09:00 - 15:00 | DACOR Bacon House 1801 F St, NW, Washington DC 20006, United States
HRNK hosted the 18th General Meeting of the International Parliamentarians’ Coalition for North Korean Refugees and Human Rights (IPCNKR) on Thursday, September 15 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m at the DACOR Bacon House.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, moderated the event.
Opening & Congratulatory Remarks
(9:00-9:30 a.m.)

The Hon. Ha Tae-keung, IPCNKR Chairperson & ROK National Assembly
The Hon. Damon Wilson, President & CEO, National Endowment for Democracy
The Hon. Hwang Woo-yea, IPCNKR Honorary Chairperson & former ROK Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs

Session 1: Promotion & Protection of Freedom of Opinion & Expression in N. Korea
(9:30-10:40 a.m.)

Jang Hyoek, former entrepreneur & defector from N. Korea
Dr. Baek Jieun, Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center
The Hon. Hong Suk-joon, ROK National Assembly
Kwon Eun-kyoung, Executive Director, NK Net

Session 2: Crimes Against Humanity in N. Korea & Accountability I
(11:00 a.m. – 12:20 p.m.)

The Hon. Nakagawa Masaharu, member of the House of Representatives, National Diet of Japan (remote)
The Hon. Futori Hideshi, member of the House of Representatives, National Diet of Japan
The Hon. Ji Seong-ho, ROK National Assembly
Choi Sung-yong, head of the Abductees’ Family Union
The Hon. Park Sun-young, former member, ROK National Assembly

Luncheon (12:20-1:30 p.m.)
Session 3: Crimes Against Humanity in N. Korea & Accountability II
(1:30-2:40 p.m.)

Lee Rae-jin, older brother of Lee Dae-jun, a ROK official who was killed by the N. Korean military
The Hon. Hwangbo Seung-hee, ROK National Assembly
Aua Baldé, Vice-Chair, UN Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances (remote)
Dr. Ethan Hee-seok Shin, Legal Analyst, Transitional Justice Working Group

Closing Remarks
(2:40-3:00 p.m.)

The Hon. Elizabeth Salmón, UN Special Rapporteur on North Korean human rights (remote)
The Hon. Young Kim, U.S. House of Representatives (CA-39), prepared remarks delivered by The Hon. Ha Tae-keung
The Hon. Ha Tae-keung

North Korean Workers Officially Dispatched to China & Russia: Human Rights Denial, Chain of Command & Control
2022-09-26 10:00 - 11:00 | Zoom, United States
On Monday, September 26, 2022, HRNK held a virtual launch of its latest report, North Korean Workers Officially Dispatched to China & Russia: Human Rights Denial, Chain of Command & Control by Greg Scarlatoiu, with Raymond Ha and Hyunseung Lee.
The report finds that “the working conditions at overseas worksites constitute forced, slave labor.” In particular, “there are severe violations of the International Labor Organization’s core Conventions and North Korea’s own labor laws.” The report also provides information about the situation of overseas workers in China & Russia during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as an outline of the chain of command & control that directs the official dispatch of overseas workers.
The report is available online at https://www.hrnk.org/uploads/pdfs/Overseas_Workers_0926.pdf.
Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director, opened the event with an overview of the practice of dispatching North Korean workers overseas, along with a summary of HRNK’s efforts to investigate the issue.
Raymond Ha, HRNK Director of Operations & Research, then provided an assessment of the gravity of labor standard violations affecting North Korea’s overseas workers.
This was followed by Hyunseung Lee, HRNK Advisor and North Korea analyst, who gave a detailed presentation about how the North Korean regime manages and oversees the official dispatch of overseas workers.
The event concluded with a brief Q&A session.
Please click on the following link to view the video recording of the report launch: https://youtu.be/fSdjRB1pIXE

Investigating DPRK Human Rights: Satellite Imagery, Lines of Responsibility, Accountability
2022-10-28 13:15 - 14:45 | Permanent Mission of Lithuania to the UN in New York / Zoom (virtual), United States
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK), The Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights (JBI), the Permanent Mission of Lithuania to the United Nations, the Permanent Mission of the Czech Republic to the United Nations, and the European Union Delegation to the UN hosted a side-event, “Investigating the DPRK Human Rights: Satellite Imagery, Lines of Responsibility, Accountability” on Friday, 28th October 2022, 1:15-2:45 PM (EST) in a hybrid format: virtually on Zoom and in-person at the premises of the Permanent Mission of Lithuania to the UN.
This event highlighted the human rights infringements and crimes against humanity perpetrated at DPRK detention facilities as well as the chain of command and control responsible for those violations, in order to emphasize the importance of human rights accountability in the DPRK.
Following presentations by ROK Ambassador-at-Large Lee Shin-wha and UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the DPRK Dr. Elizabeth Salmón, the event featured briefings by HRNK Senior Advisors Joseph S. Bermudez, Jr. and Robert Collins, based on an ongoing HRNK investigation of DPRK detention facilities, which uses a methodology combining satellite imagery, witness testimony, and open-source research.
Over three decades since the end of the Cold War, the DPRK has persisted as an egregious human rights violator. In the third decade of the 21st century, the DPRK continues to run a system of political prison camps and other unlawful detention facilities. Up to 200,000 men, women, and children are imprisoned at the DPRK’s political prison camps, pursuant to a feudal-inspired system of guilt-by-association, which punishes up to three generations for the perceived wrongdoing of one family member.
To this day, the DPRK continues to discriminate against its own citizens, based on the songbun system of perceived loyalty-based social classification. To procure the resources it needs to develop its nuclear and missile programs and to keep key elites’ content through access to luxury goods and hard currency from the outside world, the DPRK continues to exploit and oppress its people at home and abroad. This side event aimed to draw attention to the worsening human rights situation in the DPRK as well as the deepening rift between the degrading human security situation of North Koreans and the continued obstinate focusing of resources not on the people, but on the development and testing of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles.
Program Agenda
Moderator: Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director
Welcoming Remarks

H.E. Rytis Paulauskas, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Lithuania to the United Nations
H.E. Jakub Kulhánek, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Czech Republic to the United Nations
H.E. Hwang Joon-kook, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea to the United Nations

Part I: DPRK Human Rights: Past, Present, Future

H.E. Lee Shin-wha, Ambassador-at-Large for North Korean Human Rights, Republic of Korea
Dr. Elizabeth Salmón, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the DPRK

Part II: Satellite Imagery, Lines of Responsibility, Accountability

Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., HRNK Senior Advisor
Robert Collins, HRNK Senior Advisor

Q&A Session
Concluding Remarks

Greg Scarlatoiu, HRNK Executive Director

North Korea and its Regime
2022-11-16 13:00 - 14:00 | UvA Roeterseilandcampus / Zoom (virtual), United States
Dear Friends of HRNK,
You are kindly invited to participate in a hybrid lecture, “North Korea and its Regime,” organized by the Dutch United Nations Student Association (SIB Amsterdam) and the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK).
The lecture will highlight HRNK’s role as a North Korean human rights advocate, the Kim regime and Juche ideology, human rights violations in North Korea, and what can be done by the general public.
This hybrid event will be held on Wednesday, 16 November 1 PM (EST) / 7 PM (CET). The physical event will be hosted by SIB in Amsterdam, the Netherlands (UvA Roeterseilandcampus, Roetersstraat 11). It will also be live streamed on Zoom.
For further information, please contact SIB Amsterdam at info@sibamsterdam.nl.

Slaves to the Bomb: The Role and Fate of North Korea's Nuclear Scientists
2024-05-17 15:00 - 17:00 | DACOR Bacon House 1801 F St, NW, Washington, DC 20006, 1801 F St, NW, Washington DC, WA, 20006, United States
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
The Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) cordially invites you to the rollout of its latest report, Slaves to the Bomb: The Role and Fate of North Korea’s Nuclear Scientists by Robert Collins. The report can be viewed online at this link.
This event will be held on Friday, May 17 at 3:00 p.m. at the DACOR Bacon House (1801 F Street NW, Washington, D.C.).

35 Years since the Fall of the Berlin Wall: Korean Unification, Problems and Prospects
2024-11-13 15:00 - 17:00 | DACOR Bacon House 1801 F St, NW, Washington DC 20006, United States
Join us for “35 Years since the Fall of the Berlin Wall: Korean Unification, Problems, and Prospects”, hosted by the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) and the Republic of Korea Ministry of Unification.
📅 Wednesday, November 13, 2024
🕗 3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. ET
📍 DACOR Bacon House, 1801 F St. NW, Washington, DC
Explore the challenges and possibilities for Korean unification 35 years after the Berlin Wall’s fall. Click the link in the bio to view the full schedule and RSVP!

HRNK Presents: “Rogue Allies: The Strategic Partnership between Iran and North Korea”
2025-05-21 15:00 - 16:30 | DACOR Bacon House 1801 F St, NW, Washington DC 20006, United States
Join us for “Rogue Allies: The Strategic Partnership between Iran and North Korea.”
📅 Wednesday, May 21, 2025
🕗 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. ET
📍 DACOR Bacon House, 1801 F St. NW, Washington, DC
HRNK is honored to host a rollout of the book authored by Dr. Bruce E. Bechtol Jr. and Dr. Anthony N. Celso, scrutinizing North Korean proliferation of instability and violence to Iran and its proxy terrorist allies. The event will conclude with a book signing by the co-authors. Paperback copies of the book will be available for purchase, payable in cash or check. The event is on-the-record and open to the press.
Featuring the Co-authors:
Dr. Bruce E. Bechtol Jr.
Dr. Anthony N. Celso
Discussant:
Dr. George Hutchinson
Moderated by:
HRNK President and CEO Greg Scarlatoiu

Bruce E. Bechtol, Jr. (Ph.D. Union Institute), is an award-winning professor of political science at Angelo State University and a retired Marine. He was formerly on the faculty at the Marine Corps Command and Staff College (2005–2010) and the Air Command and Staff College (2003–2005). Dr. Bechtol served as an adjunct visiting professor at the Korea University Graduate School of International Studies (2006–2007). He was an intelligence officer at the Defense Intelligence Agency from 1997 until 2003, eventually serving as the senior analyst for Northeast Asia in the Intelligence Directorate (J2) on the Joint Staff in the Pentagon. He formerly sat on the editorial review board of the East Asian Review from 2005 to 2009 and served as editor of the Defense Intelligence Journal from 2004 to 2005. He is currently on the editorial advisory board of the Korea Observer (2011–present), the editorial board of the International Journal of Security Studies, and is on the scientific board of Global Humanities (2014 present). He is the current Chairman of the Board of the International Council on Korean Studies. He is the author of “North Korean Military Proliferation to the Middle East and Africa: Enabling Violence and Instability” (University Press of Kentucky: 2018), “North Korea and Regional Security in the Kim Jong-un Era: A New International Security Dilemma” (Palgrave Macmillan: 2014), “The Last Days of Kim Jong-Il: The North Korean Threat in a Changing Era” (University of Nebraska Press: 2013), “Defiant Failed State: The North Korean Threat to International Security” (Potomac Books: 2010), and “Red Rogue: The Persistent Challenge of North Korea” (Potomac Books: 2007), and he is the editor of “Confronting Security Challenges on the Korean Peninsula” (Marine Corps University Press: 2011) and “The Quest for a Unified Korea: Strategies for the Cultural and Interagency Process” (Marine Corps University Foundation: 2007). He is also the author of more than forty articles in peer-reviewed journals. A widely sought after expert on North Korean international security issues, Dr. Bechtol has been called on to present commentary to the BBC, CNN, CBC, FOX News, Radio New Zealand, syndicated nationwide radio shows such as POTUS politics on SIRIUS/XM, the John Batchelor show, and several interviews on National Public Radio (to name a few).
Dr. Anthony N Celso earned a PhD in comparative public policy from The Ohio State University in 1989. He has worked as a professor of political science at numerous academic institutions including Mount Union College, University of Central Florida, Albright College, and Valley Forge Military College. He joined the Department of Security Studies and Criminal Justice at Angelo State University (ASU) in 2011 where he teaches terrorism, weak and failing states and regional studies classes in the Middle East, Europe and Latin America. Dr Celso is the author of “Al Qaeda Post 9-11 Devolution” (New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2014) and “The Islamic State: A Comparative History of Jihadist Warfare” (Latham: Lexington Books, 2018). Dr Celso has written over two dozen journal articles on Sunni jihadist groups and terrorism. His current research involves the ongoing war between Israel and Iran’s Axis of Resistance.
Dr. George A. Hutchinson is the Editor of the International Journal of Korean Studies and a board member of the International Council on Korean Studies. He has also served as a Senior Regional Planner, supporting and advising the U.S. Air Force on basing issues in the Republic of Korea. Previously, Dr. Hutchinson specialized in supporting wargaming and energy policy as a consultant at the Pentagon. Dr. Hutchinson has served in the U.S. Air Force as both a commissioned and noncommissioned officer in the U.S. Air Force in various roles, including Logistics Readiness Officer, Northeast Asia Foreign Area Officer, and Korean linguist.
He is the author of “Army of the Indoctrinated: The Suryong, the Soldier, and Information in the KPA” (Committee for Human Rights in North Korea) and “North Korea’s Nuclear Decisions and Strategies: Sovereignty, Legitimacy, and the Bomb” (Routledge, 2024). His work has also been published in the International Journal of Korean Studies, U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, Air Force Journal of Logistics, and Marine Corps University Press as well as in reports by the Korea Economic Institute of America.
Dr. Hutchinson holds a Ph.D. from George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government and a master’s in logistics management from the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology.
Greg Scarlatoiu is the President and CEO of the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK). Since 2011, he has overseen the publication of 59 HRNK reports. For twelve years, he has been a visiting professor at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and Yonsei University in Seoul. Scarlatoiu is president of the International Council on Korean Studies (ICKS). He was a Radio Free Asia Korean columnist for twenty-two years. Scarlatoiu holds a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School, Tufts University, and a Master of Arts and Bachelor of Arts from Seoul National University’s Department of International Relations. He completed the MIT XXI Seminar for U.S. national security leaders in 2016-2017. Scarlatoiu was awarded the title “Citizen of Honor, City of Seoul,” in January 1999. Born and raised in communist Romania, he is a naturalized U.S. citizen. Scarlatoiu is fluent in Korean, French and Romanian.

HRNK Presents Our Latest Report: The Reconnaissance General Bureau The Kim Regime’s “Precious Treasured Sword” By Robert Collins
2026-02-23 16:00 - 17:30 | Zoom
HRNK Presents Our Latest Report:
The Reconnaissance General Bureau
The Kim Regime’s “Precious Treasured Sword”
By Robert Collins
February 23, 2026, 16:00 – 17:30 U.S. Eastern Time
Via Zoom
This event will be open to the press and on the record.
Please RSVP through the link on the Website Section on the right side of the page.

Introductory Remarks:
Greg Scarlatoiu, President and CEO, Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK)Presenter:
Robert Collins, Report AuthorDiscussants:
Dr. Nicholas Eberstadt, HRNK Board Member and Henry Wendt Chair, American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
ROKA LTG (Ret.) Chun In-bum
Dr. George Hutchinson
Editor-in-Chief, International Journal of Korean Studies (IJKS)
Adjunct Professor, Schar School of Policy and Government, George Mason University
Moderator:
Greg Scarlatoiu

The North Korean regime understands that its long-term survival can’t be guaranteed if South Korea continues to exist and thrive. From its viewpoint, unification under its control is the only way to guarantee its survival and perpetuation.
To achieve that goal, the Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB) has been the ultimate instrument of infiltration, subversion, and disruption of South Korea. Collins scrutinizes the RGB’s genesis, history, mission, tactics, and chain of control and command. He highlights how RGB operations have violated international human rights law as well as the fundamental human rights of South Koreans and citizens of other countries.

Prior to the program, HRNK will share the Zoom link with confirmed participants.The event is open to the press and on-the-record.

THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL ON KOREAN STUDIES Co-hosted with the Hudson Institute and the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK) CHALLENGES TO THE US-ROK ALLIANCE IN 2026
2026-04-30 | Hudson Institute, 1201 Pennsylvania Ave, NW Suite 400, Washington, DC, 20004, United States
THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF
THE INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL ON KOREAN STUDIES
Co-hosted with the Hudson Institute and the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK)CHALLENGES TO THE US-ROK ALLIANCE IN 2026

Thursday, April 30, 2026
The Hudson Institute
1201 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Suite 400 Washington, D.C. 20004The event will be held in person at The Hudson Institute.
