Kim Jong Il inspects KPA women's unit

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) - General Secretary Kim Jong Il inspected KPA women's unit no. 3421. He was accompanied by KPA generals Kim Ha Gyu, Hyon Chol Hae and Pak Jae Gyong. After seeing a training of women soldiers, he expressed great satisfaction with their successful fulfilment of military tasks given. He said that they should arm themselves firmly with the WPK's idea on military strategy and Juche-based war method and more fully prepare themselves to be a-match-for-a-hundred fighters. Then, he went round the education room, bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and other entertainment and supply facilities and a power station built by the unit with its own efforts and warmly looked after the life of soldiers as their real parents would. He enjoyed an art performance given by soldiers of a company under the unit and expressed great satisfaction over the fact that all the soldiers of the unit are optimistically struggling and living in a revolutionary way full of conviction. He gave soldiers of the unit a pair of binoculars as a gift and posed for a photograph with them.

Kim Jong Il visits north Hamgyong Province

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) - General Secretary Kim Jong Il directed various sectors in north Hamgyong Province. During his on-site guidance, he visited various places such as the weak-current apparatus plant, Onpho Power Stations nos. 3 and 4 in Kyongsong county, the modern dwelling houses newly built on the Sangonpho and Ryonghyon cooperative farms in the county and the pleasure park on Mt. Chilbo. General Secretary Kim Jong Il met with innovators of the weak-current apparatus plant, warmly encouraged them and had a picture taken with them. While looking round Onpho Power Stations nos. 3 and 4 built in Kyongsong county, he expressed great satisfaction with the fact that the electric problem for the county was solved with its own effort and that many houses were heated with electricity. He saw a street-car manufactured by the workers of the Chongjin Bus Factory. He then went round modern dwelling houses built on Sangonpho and Ryonghyon cooperative farms in Kyongsong county. He looked round the inside and outside of a dwelling house, expressed much satisfaction and thanked the workers for having built dwelling houses, well-furnished and electrically-heated, for farmers. He then went to Mt. Chilbo, a scenic spot on the east coast of Korea that is being turned into a holiday resort of the people. Having learned about the overall affairs of the province, the Chairman of the DPRK National Defence Commission put forward important tasks facing various sectors of the national economy. He advanced tasks to develop the metal industry. He called for establishing the Juche character and independence of the ferrous metal industry in a thorough-going way, modernising the production processes and supplying the Musan Mining Complex and other related industrial establishments with raw and other materials in time and in larger quantities. He laid down tasks to electrify the whole of the country. In order to meet the rapidly increasing need for electricity, he said, it is necessary to increase the capacity of the existing power stations to the full, build minor power stations wherever water flows and make a living with local effort. He referred to the tasks to increase agricultural production. He called for planting high-yield crops such as potato and cultivating various kinds of industrial crops of high yield and income. He also called for doing land administration properly, creating forests of economic, protection and landscape value on all mountains in a prospective way, improving river embankments and continuously renovating road construction and technical conditions of roads. Turning to tasks to improve the people's standard of living, he called for heating the dwelling houses with electricity, building larger numbers of modern houses and supplying the people with larger quantities of subsidiary food. He also called for building many pleasure parks on Mt. Chilbo and other scenic spots and providing the people with better cultural conditions for rest.

U.S. bellicose elements' reckless war preparations against DPRK

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- The U.S. navy reportedly staged a DPRK-targeted "test of a future-oriented war" in the waters around the Korean peninsula. The Defense News of the U.S. November 16 said the test war, codenamed "delta," lasted ten days from October 24. In the test various kinds of warships of the U.S. navy carried out war operations in coordination with the army and the marine corps under the simulated conditions of a war on the Korean peninsula. The maneuvers clearly show once again that the aggressive design of the U.S. bellicose elements to stifle the DPRK by force of arms still remains unchanged.

Photo exhibition and film show

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- A photo exhibition and film show were held here on Tuesday on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the proclamation of the state of Palestine. Palestinian ambassador to Korea Shaher Mohammed Abdlah and an embassy official were invited there. Present there were Ryom Sun Gil, chairman of the central committee of the General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea and chairman of the Korea-Palestine friendship and solidarity committee, officials concerned and citizens.

Military attaches' corps visits Sinchon Museum

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- The military attaches' corps in Korea visited the Sinchon Museum on Tuesday. Exhibited in the museum are evidences and materials showing massacre of Korean people committed by the U.S. imperialist aggressors in Sinchon area during the Korean War (June 1950-July 1953). Mohammad Hassan Nami, military attache of the Iranian embassy in Pyongyang, wrote in the visitors' book that after visiting the museum he could clearly know how cruelly the U.S. imperialists killed Korean people and how bravely the Korean people fought against U.S. imperialism. Alfonso Rodriguez Perez, military attache of the Cuban embassy, said that through the visit he deeply realized again that the nature of Americans has never changed at all. "We will also actively struggle against the U.S. imperialists," he stressed.

Pyongyang-Nampho Highway to be built

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- An express highway will be built in a 40-odd-kilometre section from Mangyongdae fork in Pyongyang to the entrance of the port city of Nampho. Tens of bridges, flyovers and main roads will be built in the section. When the highway is completed, the traffic network of the country will be further improved, which will greatly contribute to the economic and cultural development of Pyongyang and Nampho. Meetings of soldier-builders and working people were held to vow to hasten the construction of the highway.

Book "Under the Rays of Lodestar" (vol.3) published

Tokyo, November 16 (KNS) -- The book "Under the Rays of Lodestar" (vol.3) was published by the central standing committee of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon) on the occasion of the 53rd anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea. The book tells about the great leader Kim Jong Il's benevolent love for Chongryon officials and Koreans in Japan. Contained in it are stories written by Chongryon officials and Koreans in Japan about the warm affection of Kim Jong Il.

Songs created this year

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- Many songs have been created in Korea this year. Songs "Our Marshal's Motto," "Red Persimmon of the Outpost," "Request" and "Clear Water of Sobaek Stream Continues to Flow" tell about noble virtues of the great leader Kim Jong Il devoted to people and soldiers of the people's army and about the faith and will of the Korean people to dedicate themselves to him. "Let Us Become Satellites of the Sun" and "Cradle of My Life," songs which were created by the Wangjaesan Light Music Band, are very popular as they reflect people's feelings. Songs dealing with conviction of and optimism about the victory of Korean-style socialism were created. Among them are "victorious road" and "our tomorrow will tell." "Fatherland Loves Servicemen," "I am a Soldier of the Marshal," "Seamen Come Back to Military Port," "Smell of the Soil around Trench" and other songs reflect the pride and ardent patriotism of the soldiers of the Korean People's Army. Newly created songs include "Let Us Sing of Sun's Day" and "Our Sun's Day Will be Eternal" representing the Korean people's determination to have the President Kim Il Sung as the eternal leader of Korea. Besides, songs based on national reunification and present life were created including "Reunification Arirang," "Ojak Bridge of Reunification," "Letters Between People and Army" and "A Girl's Handkerchief." The songs powerfully encourage the Korean people who are working hard to build a powerful socialist country with the firm conviction of victory.

U.S. special envoy for Korean peninsula peace talks and his entotrage leave

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- Charles Kartman, a U.S. special envoy for the Korean peninsula peace talks, and his entourage left here today. During their stay they had discussions with vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Kye Gwan about outstanding issues between the DPRK and the U.S.

Kim Yong Sun meets President of ITF and his party

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- Secretary Kim Yong Sun of the Workers' Party of Korea Central Committee today met and conversed with president Choe Hong Hui of the International Taekwon-do Federation and his party, who are staying in the socialist homeland, at the Mansudae Assembly Hall.

Greetings to Sultan of Oman

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- Kim Yong Nam, President of the presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly of the DPRK, sent a message of greetings to Sultan Qaboos Bin Said Al Said on the occasion of the National Day of the Sultanate of Oman. He wished the Sultan and the people of Oman greater success in the work for progress and prosperity of the country and expressed the belief that the friendly relations between the two countries would develop on good terms.

Talks between parliamentary delegations of Korea and Colombia

Pyongyang, November 18 (KCNA) -- Talks were held between delegations of the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) of the DPRK and the Colombian parliament at the Mansudae Assembly Hall on November 18. At the talks, the two sides discussed future development of friendly and cooperative relations between the two parliaments and a series of matters of common concern. Present at the talks on the Korean side were Jong Tong Uk, deputy to the SPA, and other officials concerned and on the opposite side were members of the delegation of the Colombian parliament led by Juan Ignacio Castrillon, member of the House of Representatives of Colombia.