Domestic Affairs
Domestic Affairs
- Chairman Kim Jong-il visited army units 243 and 2744 on January 31 and February 1, respectively, and navy unit 587 two days later, and exhorted to strengthen combat readiness.
- The North Korean Ministry of People's Armed Forces held a report session on February 5 to follow-up the slogan of the "One Against a Hundred" campaign proffered by the late leader Kim Il-sung and vowed to reinforce its determination to fight the United States.
- The military resolved on January 31 to prepare for a "combat till death" spirit at a soldiers' meeting in Mt. Daedeok, a rally by the army, navy and air force units and an assembly by the navy's Namdongchoon unit.
- A variety of celebratory events like visits to historic revolutionary sites and exploratory parades were held ahead of Kim Jong-il's birthday February 16.
- Other celebratory events included a "central photograph exhibition," a "central fine arts exhibit," display of "Kim Jong-il Flower" by the Ministry of People's Armed Forces and the 8th "Athletic Meet of Central Agency Workers on the Peak of Mt. Baekdu."
- On the economic front, North Korea advertised that workers and the working class at the Ranam Coal Mining Union Enterprise, and other establishments, exceeded their target production plans in January.
- It also said mobile phone services were opened in Pyongyang and Naseon in November and that laying of a nationwide computer network was completed to usher in communication service.
- On the occasion of the lunar New Year holiday February 1-3, North Korea tried to boost the morale of its population by providing food and creating a festival atmosphere through various folklore entertainment.
Relations with South Korea
- In connection with a survey trip for the overland Mt. Geumgang tourism February 5-6, North Korea said favorable conditions existed for further development in inter-Korean cooperative projects, including Mt. Geumgang tourism.
- Through statements by its vice chairman Ri Jong-hyeok, on February 1, and his spokesman the next day, North Korea's Asia-Pacific Peace Committee claimed that South Korea's controversial remittances to North Korea constituted normal inter-Korean economic transaction and warned that the South-North Korean relationship could be suspended if the South raises the matter.
- Through a statement by its spokesman on February 6, North Korea's Committee for the Peaceful Unification of the Fatherland urged the entire Korean people to wage a struggle against the United States, contending that the extended service period for the U.S. forces in Korea and the dispatch of an aircraft carrier were tantamount to a war.
- Concerning Kim Jong-il's failure to meet with the special envoy of the South Korean president, North Korea expressed dissatisfaction over the criticism by some quarters in the South, saying the envoy was well received in the North.
External Affairs
- With regard to the U.S. move to increase military presence near the Korean peninsula, North Korea maintained, through its Korean Central News Agency February 5, that the move was a "very grave development that would occur on the eve of a war."
- North Korea showed a sensitive reaction by using such phrases as "consider as an act of war" or the "seed of an all-out war" regarding rumors that the United States was preparing a sneak attack on nuclear installations in North Korea.
- The spokesman of North Korea's foreign ministry denounced U.S. president George W. Bush's recent State of the Union address as a "declaration of aggression to overturn the institutions" and the IAEA's report to the United Nations Security Council on the North Korean nuclear issue as an attempt to put international pressures on Pyongyang.
