KEDO delegation here
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- A high-level experts negotiating delegation of the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO) arrived here yesterday to discuss the issues related to the light water reactor construction.
Floral basket and congratulatory card to Kim Jong Il
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il received a floral basket and a congratulatory card from Lansana Conte, President of Guinea, on the occasion of his 58th birthday.
Authorized by the President the political and diplomatic advisor to the President and the private advisor to him paid a congratulatory visit to the DPRK embassy in Conakry and handed them to the ambassador on Feb. 16.
The card said:
"Congratulations to your excellency Kim Jong Il on your 58th birthday. General Lansana Conte, President of the Republic of Guinea."
The political and diplomatic advisor said that the birthday of Kim Jong Il is a common holiday of the Korean people and humankind.
The Guinean people will constantly render active support to the just cause of the Korean people in the future, too, and advance hand in hand with the Korean people for ever, he said.
Ceremony for naming DPRK class held in India
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- A ceremony for naming the "DPRK class" was held at the Manaba Barati international school in India on Feb. 16, the 58th birthday of General Secretary Kim Jong Il.
Speeches were made at the ceremony.
The principal of the school in the speech said that the "DPRK class", hanging the portraits of the President Kim Il Sung and General Secretary Kim Jong Il on a wall of its classroom, is a symbol of friendship between the peoples and the pupils of the two countries. It will be a friendship class which enables all the teaching staff and pupils to be well aware of the great leaders of the Korean people and Korea, he added.
A congratulatory performance was given by pupils of the school at the ceremony.
Nepalese figures pay congratulatory visit to DPRK embassy
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- Former chairman of the National Council of the Nepalese Parliament Beni Bahadur Karki, chairperson of the central committee of the Nepal Communist Party (Marxist-Leninist) Sahana Pradhan, its general secretary Bamadev Gautam, chairman of the central committee of the Nepal Worker-Peasant Party Narayan Man Bijukchhe, and other leaders and representatives of political parties, government officials and figures of public organizations of Nepal paid a congratulatory visit to the Korean embassy in Kathmandu on Feb. 16, the 58th birthday of General Secretary Kim Jong Il.
The chairperson of the central committee of the Nepal Communist Party (Marxist-Leninist) said that Kim Jong Il is the great leader of socialist cause and the greatest man.
The future of not only Korean socialism but also the international communist movement and the anti-imperialist struggle for independence of the world progressives in the 21st century depends on the long life and good health of Kim Jong Il, she said.
Kim Jong Il sends gift to Yuwen middle school in Jilin, China
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il sent a gift to Yuwen middle school in Jilin, China, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of friendly relations between Changdok school of the DPRK and the middle school.
A ceremony of conveying the gift took place at the hall of the Jilin city people's congress on Feb. 17.
Speeches were made by the director of the middle school, a deputy mayor of the Jilin city people's government and the director of the public relations office of the government.
The director of the middle school extended thanks to Kim Jong Il for sending the gift so as to make celebrations of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of friendly relations between the two schools meaningful. He said the school would preserve and take good care of the statue of President Kim Il Sung and relics in the future, too, and strive hard to convey his revolutionary feats related to the middle school generation after generation.
Four seasons in Korea
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- Korea is characterized by a clear seasonal change of spring, summer, autumn and winter.
It has spring from March to May, summer from June to August, autumn from September to November and winter from December to February next year.
Spring is the beautiful season when everything comes back to life and flowers are in full bloom.
Relatively the rainfall dwindles and clear weather continues. Accordingly the climate is getting warmer and warmer.
In summer the whole country is clad in thick foliage.
Very humid and hot weather continues in the season.
The rainfall in the three months of the summer stands at the level of 300 to 1,030 mm or 40 to 65 percent of the total annual rainfall. The rainfall in July and August, the rainy season, reaches 250 to 850 mm or 75 to 85 percent of the summer rainfall.
Autumn is a harvest season. Clear and dry weather continues and temperature goes down.
In winter the whole country is covered with snow and hit by cold wind.
The daytime in winter is shorter than other seasons and a cold weather continues. It is characterized by a repetition of three cold days and four warm days in the midst of snowfall.
Many documentary films, songs and dances deal with these peculiar four seasons in Korea.
Guyanese national day marked
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- Newspapers here today mark the 30th anniversary of the proclamation of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana.
Minju Joson in a signed article notes that since the proclamation of the republic the Guyanese people have striven hard to consolidate its national independence and achieve its independent development, smashing all manner of interference and pressure of the imperialists.
It continues:
The Korean people sincerely rejoice over the successes achieved by the Guyanese people in building a new society.
The friendly relations between the peoples of Korea and Guyana are long-standing and have been steadily developed.
The Korean people will as ever make efforts to boost the DPRK-Guyana friendship.
The Korean people wish the Guyanese people greater success in their efforts to build a new independent and prosperous society.
Bust of Kim Chaek erected
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- A bust of a communist revolutionary fighter Kim Chaek was erected at the Kim Chaek Air Force University.
Kim Chaek (1903-1951) was a true communist of Korea, who embarked on the revolutionary struggle in his early days and devoted himself to the liberation of the country, people's happiness, prosperity and development of the country and the victory of the Juche revolutionary cause under the leadership of the President Kim Il Sung.
He participated in the anti-Japanese armed struggle organized and led by the President and greatly contributed to the final victory of the anti-Japanese war.
After the liberation of the country he made a distinguished contribution to the cause of the building of the party, country and army, true to the President's intention to build a new country. During the Fatherland Liberation War he greatly contributed to the victory of the war by acting as a front commander.
The President saw to it that a city, a university, a unit of the Korean People's Army and military schools were named after him to shine his exploits down through generations.
An unveiling ceremony of the bust was held at the university on Tuesday.
A wreath sent by General Secretary Kim Jong Il was laid before his bust.
Wreaths were laid in the name of the Ministry of the People's Armed Forces, the Kim Chaek Air Force University, bereaved family and others.
Minister of the People's Armed Forces Kim Il Chol made a speech.
GI's killing of S. Korean woman flayed
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- A recent brutal killing of a South Korean woman by a GI in Seoul is barbarism which can be committed only by American cannibals who regard genocide as a pastime, says Rodong Sinmun today in a signed commentary.
Murder, robbery, rape and plunder committed by the U.S. aggression troops without a let-up in South Korea clearly indicate that they consider the South Koreans no better than "colonial inferiors" and "rats," the commentary notes, and goes on:
These shuddering barbarities by the U.S. aggression troops are encouraged by the South Korean authorities who seek to prolong their remaining days by serving their master.
The authorities again disclosed their mean colors as colonial stooges this time by shunning investigation into the crime even after a GI was proved to be a criminal, the commentary says, stressing that the only way for the South Koreans to force the criminals to pay for the blood shed by them and shake off the fetters of colonial slavery is to turn out in a courageous struggle against the aggressors and traitors.
KCNA calls for standing guard against Japan
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- NHK television on Feb. 10 broadcast a brief report that Japan failed again in "M5" rocket launch. Short as the report was, it involves an issue which cannot be overlooked. Why is Japan giving spurs to developing and launching space rocket despite its repeated failure?
Japan claims it is aimed at study of space science. But this is a sophism.
"H-2" and "M5" rockets now possessed by Japan can be easily upgraded into intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, if a slight improvement is made in its mechanism.
Japan is so keen on developing space rocket to realize its invariable ambition to become a military giant, a nuclear power.
The Japanese warhawks have taken much pain to revive militarism for more than 50 years after the war, saying Japan was defeated in the Pacific War because of "weak strength", not by the "judgement of history". And they have spent a fabulous amount of funds for the development of nuclear weapons and made all preparations to become a military power any moment. What remains to be done by Japan is to develop and possess missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. To this end, Japan is hell-bent on the development of space weapons.
That is why Japan is now getting so feverish in the moves to develop the "Theatre Missile Defence" system in collusion with the United States.
It is to have space weapons without difficulty with the backing of the United States that only Japan is so keen on developing the "TMD" system at a time when China, Russia and EU nations are strongly opposed to it.
Japan, together with the United States, is getting overheated in the development of space weapons and preparations for a second Korean war. This reality clearly proves that it was a very just act pertaining to the sovereignty of the DPRK for it to have increased national defence capabilities and made full preparations to repel possible aggression.
We will sharply watch Japan's reckless moves to become a military giant and take all necessary counter-measures.
Serious shortage of electricity
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- Never before in the history of Korea has there been such power shortage as today. This is adversely affecting the overall economic life in the DPRK.
The present power shortage has caused a serious hindrance not only to production and construction but to the normal operation of major related processes.
A regular railway transport, heating and lighting as well as agriculture are seriously affected by the shortage.
The Korean people hold the United States wholly responsible for all these difficulties.
Korea abounds in power resources.
The state created huge hydropower generating capacity in many parts of the country.
The existing power generating capacity is enough to satisfactorily meet the requirements for electricity needed for the economic development and people's living.
But in the latter half of the 20th century the DPRK could not guarantee security in harnessing hydropower resources because of the abnormal climatic conditions that swept the world.
Under this situation the state pushed ahead with the construction of an atomic power plant to be operated by a graphite-moderated reactor based on locally available abundant fuel to meet the increasing needs for electricity.
If the atomic power plant project had been pushed ahead as planned, it would have already been completed and paid off profusely and the country would not have been faced with the power shortage as today.
But, the U.S. came out with an unreasonable pretext to obstruct the construction of the peaceful nuclear-power base in the DPRK.
The U.S. offered to build two light water reactors (LWR) for the DPRK, provided it halts the atomic power plant projects.
Lifting economic sanctions against the DPRK was one of its promises.
But due to the U.S. failure to faithfully implement the related provisions of the DPRK-U.S. agreed framework the LWR construction will probably not be finished even by 2010, though the initial plan called for completion by 2003. Its economic sanctions have not been totally lifted.
The DPRK's freezing of nuclear-power base construction has brought an enormous loss to it for which the U.S. can hardly compensate with its heavy oil.
Its loss in the field of direct production has already amounted to tens of billions of dollars.
There are, of course, other reasons for the acute shortage of electricity in the DPRK.
Power plants and their related fields have been hard hit by years of serious natural disasters.
The U.S., refusing to drop its hostile policy towards the DPRK, is taking the lead in escalating pressure and sanctions against it in all aspects.
This has lashed the Korean people into a bitter anger at the U.S.
Though their conditions remain hard, the Korean people will surely break through them by themselves and build a powerful nation in the near future.
Reckless triangular war maneuvers under fire
Pyongyang, February 23 (KCNA) -- It is the first time that the U.S.-Japan computer simulation military exercises are timed to coincide with the U.S.-South Korean "joint surprise air strike operation" drill and this is not an accidental coincidence, observes Rodong Sinmun today in a signed commentary.
The commentary goes on:
The U.S., Japan and South Korean rulers claim that these military drills are not interrelated but "no more than symbolic ones." But these are part of a series of war maneuvers planned under the system of the triangular military alliance involving the U.S., Japan and South Korea.
The only thing different is the theatres for those exercises.
The aggressive nature of the two military drills lies in that they signify a new step forward in putting the "triangular military cooperation system" into practice.
The moves to strengthen the triangular military alliance are a factor in rendering unstable the situation in the Asian and pacific regions and in northeast Asia, in particular, and sparking a new arms race and armed conflict.
The military rehearsals being staged within the framework of the triangular military alliance are aimed at making a forestalling attack on the DPRK.
We are fully prepared to counter the ever more undisguised aggressive war moves of the U.S., Japan and South Korean rulers any time.
The U.S., Japan and South Korean rulers are seriously mistaken if they think they can gain something through the strengthened triangular military alliance.