【Internal Affairs】
On May 18, the North Korean media reported
that the first enlarged meeting of the 7th Central Military Commission
of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) took place.
On May 15, the North Korean media reported that Premier Pak Pong Ju
provided field guidance at several units in Suncheon City.
On May 14, the North Korean media emphasized “self-reliance” for the
victory in the general march for economic construction.
On May 16 and 17, the North Korean media reported that each
vocational association held an enlarged meeting to carry out the tasks
set forth by the respected Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un at the 3rd
Plenary Meeting of the 7th Central Committee of the WPK.
On May 18, the North Korean media reported on the progress in the
construction of the Wonsan-Kalma coastal tourist zone.
On May 16, the North Korean media reported that construction is
underway to restore archaeological remains.
【Inter-Korean Affairs】
On May 16, the North Korean media
reported that the North suspended high-level talks with the ROK due to
the 2018 Max Thunder joint air combat exercise and former North Korean
deputy ambassador to the UK Thae Yong-ho’s remarks on the North (May 14).
On May 17, the North Korean media reported that the chairman of the
Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Country of the DPRK,
in a Q&A session with KCNA reporters, said, “It won’t be easy to
sit face-to-face with the South Korean officials unless the South
addresses the grave situation,” after the South expressed regret and
called on the North to end its delay of the high-level talks.
On May 12 and 13, the North Korean media reported that the
Propaganda Department of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification
of the Country of the DPRK, in a report, publicized Kim Jong Un’s
achievements regarding improvement in inter-Korean relations.
On May 14, the North Korean media urged the South to repatriate the
North Korean female restaurant workers who defected to the South in
2016 and North Korean defector Kim Ryon-hui.
On May 15, the North Korean media called on the South to remove any
institutional obstacles to implementation of the Panmunjeom Declaration.
On May 15, the North Korean media warned that any connivance by the
South in leaflet scattering would render the implementation of the
Panmunjeom Declaration difficult.
On May 17, the North Korean media condemned the South regarding the
2018 Max Thunder joint air combat exercise.
【Foreign Affairs】
On May 12 and 13, the North Korean media
reported that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a press release,
announced that the Punggye-ri nuclear test site will be dismantled
sometime between May 23 and 25, depending on the weather.
On May 16, the North Korean media reported that North Korea’s vice
foreign minister Kim Kye Gwan, in a statement, said that if the US
“corners us and unilaterally demands we give up nuclear weapons, we
will no longer have an interest in talks and will have to reconsider
whether we will accept the upcoming DPRK-US summit.”
On May 18, the North Korean media reported that North Korea’s
ambassador to the UN in Geneva, in a speech at the 2nd session of the
Geneva Disarmament Conference, said that the North would join the
international community’s efforts regarding the Comprehensive Nuclear
Test-Ban Treaty.
On May 15, the North Korean media denounced the US for putting
pressure on the North regarding human rights issues.
On May 16, the North Korean media blasted the US regarding the 2018
Max Thunder joint air combat exercise.
On May 17, the North Korean media reported that a friendship
visiting group of the WPK met with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
