InternalAffairs
Internal Affairs
o Chairman
Kim Jong-il visited military unit 934 on May 30 and Impregnable Royal Guard unit
716 two days later to boost military morale and to induce allegiance. He also
visited a 'farm' and a 'goat breeding farm' belonging to military unit 534 on
June 4 to conduct an on-site guidance, during which he showed interest in
double-cropping and quality dairy products.
o The presidium of North
Korea's Supreme People's Assembly reported June 3 that election of the 11th-term
deputies of the Supreme People's Assembly will be held on August 3. And, on the
occasion of the 55th anniversary of its founding this year, North Korea is
expected to strengthen its internal unity and overhaul its overall state
management systems by again installing Kim Jong-il as the chairman of the
National Defense Commission and restructuring organizations and personnel in key
state institutions.
o In a presidium ordinance of the Supreme People's
Assembly June 2, the jurisdiction of Gaepung and Jangpung counties went to North
Hwanghae province from Gaeseong city. The step was rated as an administrative
move to intensively develop the Gaeseong area as industrial and tourism
zones.
o The Workers Party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, reported June 4
that 20 million "People's Livelihood Bonds" were sold in May. It gave this
interim report on the sale of the bonds apparently to encourage the people to
buy them.
o In a ceremony to start the operation of Cheongdan Basic Food
Factory May 31, North Korea said it now had the capability to produce and
provide basic foods like soy sauce and soybean paste smoothly. Highlighting
efforts to expand the sources of side-dishes, the Rodong Sinmun also said June 2
that some 100 pastures for goats were created in North Korea and that the number
of goats was multiplied 3.8 times in the past seven years.
o North
Korea's Central Broadcasting Station reported June 1 that on the occasion of the
53rd anniversary of International Children's Day, children in North Korea spent
the fete meaningfully with songs, dances, sports and various entertainment. The
events appear to be intended to encourage allegiance of the children by showing
the state's interest in and consideration for them.
Relations with South Korea
o North Korea's
Committee for the Peaceful Unification of the Fatherland in a statement on June
2 mentioned the possibility of a 'greater disaster for South Korea if it
criticized the North Korean ruling system' and demanded that the South apologize
and prevent any repetition of similar situations.
o In connection with
the South Korean navy's warning shots over the North Korean fishing boats that
crossed the Northern Limit Line (NLL) into the South Korean waters, a spokesman
of North Korea's naval command alleged June 2 that the move was a "military
provocation with shots" as they encroached upon the North Korean territorial
waters."
o An inter-Korean military working-level meeting, held at
Panmunjom on June 4, discussed solutions of various military issues pending
connection of railways and roads between the two Koreas. The two sides also
agreed to visit the other's zone on June 11 to make on-site verification of the
work to connect the Seoul-Sinuiju Railway and the Donghae (East Sea) Railway and
their parallel roads.
* It will be the first time that soldiers of each
side will visit the other side of the Demilitarized Zone since the 1953 Korean
armistice.
External Affairs
o
The spokesman of the North Korean foreign ministry said that in an interview
with the (North) Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) June 2 a U.S. congressional
delegation stated that North Korea and the delegation "reached an agreement on
resolving the nuclear issue through dialogue," a remark indicating Pyongyang's
hope for a meeting with Washington. The six-member delegation, led by Curt
Weldon, visited North Korea May 30-June 1.
o On the occasion of the
passage of the National Emergency Legislation by Japan's parliament, the KCNA
issued a memorandum June 6, in which North Korea vehemently denounced Japan for
"launching maneuvers for overseas expansionism to establish a hegemonic
domination over Asia." It made the denunciation as it illustrated a chronicle of
Japan's history of invasion and moves to build a great military power.
o
In a KCNA interview with the foreign ministry, North Korea condemned the G-8
Summit for the "sycophancy and flattery condoning the U.S. strong-arm methods."
It made the condemnation in reaction to the G-8 summit's statement that North
Korea had violated international law in connection with the nuclear
issue.
