Where’s #KimJongUn? Experts told us about strategies to track #NorthKorea’s secretive leader. Hint: it involves looking at residences, motorcades, train stations, flights — and of course state broadcasts.
https://www.nytimes.com/video/world/asia/100000007099211/kim-jong-un-surveillance-intelligence.html

Most important, as @newsjean emphasized, we should use multiple sources. This was never more important than right now. She knows, since she is the A.P.’s former Pyongyang bureau chief. Here are some tools that are being used:

Satellite images: In a country where information is heavily controlled and access is limited, images can offer important clues, show patterns and reveal change. We can track motorcades or trains, and monitor Kim Jong-un’s residences and private airfields (among other features).

For example, @38NorthNK @martyn_williams spotted an important detail today: A train that probably belongs to Kim Jong-un is seen near his Wonsan residence. via @planetlabs https://www.38north.org/2020/04/wonsancompound042520/

A recent change we noticed in @maxar imagery: Kim Jong-un’s reported personal clinic was demolished in February and replaced with a larger structure (purpose still unclear). I reviewed a series of sat images, showing mainly two large halls, so it might not be another clinic.

Experts are also closely monitoring official state broadcasts and publications for any new images of Kim Jong-un. (Or for an abundance of new retrospectives of Kim Jong-un, his father and grandfather, which might indicate something bad happened to him).

In addition to tracking his train, we can also look at planes: There are only about half a dozen flights going into Pyongyang on a daily basis, even less during the coronavirus pandemic. Any unscheduled flights, such as to bring in foreign doctors, would stand out.

To be clear: There’s no magic tool to understanding what’s going on in #NorthKorea. And working with human sources is often still the most important strategy.

Many thanks to @Michael_NKLW @newsjean @martyn_williams for talking to us this week, and to @Maxar for a lot of sat images. Video by @robinnyc7 @tiefenthaeler @bottidavid @DrewJordan_NYT @whitney_hurst