Kim Jong Il inspects KPA naval unit no. 256
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- Leader Kim Jong Il inspected KPA naval unit no. 256 on Sunday.
He was accompanied by KPA generals Hyon Chol Hae and Pak Jae Gyong and Kim Kuk Thae, secretary of the WPK Central Committee.
Guided by the commander of the unit, he went round the monument to President Kim Il Sung's on-the-spot guidance and acquainted himself in detail with the performance of the unit's duty.
He expressed great satisfaction with the fact that the commanding officers and men of the unit have strengthened and developed it into invincible combat ranks through their energetic efforts to carry through the on-the-spot instruction given by the president.
Noting that it is of very weighty importance significance to strengthen the naval force in our country seabound on three sides, he advanced highly important tasks which would serve as a guideline in implementing to the letter the Workers' Party of Korea's Juche-based policy of building the navy.
Then he went round an education room, bedroom, mess, kitchen, provision store, bathroom and other places. He was greatly pleased to learn that the commanding officers have provided the soldiers with good living conditions, bearing deep in mind the teaching of the president that supply service precisely means a political work.
Saying that he is very pleased to be with sailors, he enjoyed an art performance given by them.
He noted with great satisfaction that all the sailors of the unit have grown to be indomitable brave fighters and are fully prepared as soldiers strong in idea and faith who live and struggle in a revolutionary manner, full of optimism and enthusiasm.
He gave the unit a pair of binoculars and an automatic rifle as gifts and had a photograph taken with the servicemen of the unit.
Greetings to President of Cameroon
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- Kim Yong Nam, President of the presidium of the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly, on May 17 sent a message of greetings to Paul Biya, President of Cameroon, on the occasion of its national day.
Extending warm congratulations, the message sincerely wished the President and people of Cameroon greater success in the work for the national unity and prosperity of the country.
It expressed the belief that the friendly and cooperative ties between the two countries would grow stronger.
Japan's distortion of history in textbooks assailed
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- Madagascan public figures made public statements lashing out Japan's moves to distort its history textbooks.
The chairman of the Madagascan National Committee for the Study of the Juche Idea in a statement on May 11 said: The Japanese authorities approved at their examination history textbooks for middle schoolers in which Japan's history of aggression is distorted.
This is a mockery of the Korean and other Asian people and an open challenge to justice and conscience of the world.
He strongly urged the Japanese authorities to take a step to correct the distorted history textbooks immediately and clearly write about Japan's crimes in them, bearing deep in mind that the moves to tamper with history will accelerate its destruction.
The general secretary of the Madagascar-Korea Friendship and Solidarity Committee in a statement on May 15 urged Japan to sincerely reflect on its crime-woven history before the world conscience, saying that Japan's distortion of history means repetition of aggression and plunder of Asia and the rest of the world.
Kim Jong Il sends wreath to bier of late Ri Song Bok
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- Leader Kim Jong Il Sunday sent a wreath to the bier of Ri Song Bok, alternate member and chief of the secretarial office of the C.C., the WPK, expressing deep condolences over his death.
KCNA on U.S. non-compliance with agreed framework
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- The construction of light water reactor power plants which the U.S. committed itself to provide to the DPRK under the dprk-u.s. agreed framework is too much delayed and unlikely to be completed by the target year. despite this serious development, the united states is taking an irresponsible stand and attitude toward the issue.
Cock-and-bull stories about the "revision" of the AF and the "provision of thermal power plants" are heard from among officials of the Bush administration.
The DPRK can not but take a serious view of this assertion as it is little short of the declaration of the U.S. will to evade its responsibility for the delay in the construction of the LWRs and ditch the commitments the two governments should fulfil under the AF.
As known to everybody, the AF was concluded thanks to the courageous decision made by the DPRK to sacrifice its independent nuclear power industry.
If graphite-moderated reactors with a generating capacity of 50mw (e) and 200 mw(e) each which were about to be commissioned in 1994 had gone into operation and the construction of atomic power plants with an annual generating capacity of hundreds of thousands of kw expected to start in the year 1997 had been commissioned, the DPRK would have certainly created the aggregate generating capacity of 2 million kw by the year 2003.
The DPRK's freeze of its nuclear power industry under the AF has brought a huge loss of electricity and a lot of economic difficulties.
The U.S., however, has dragged on the implementation of the AF under this or that pretext though nearly seven years have passed since its adoption and is trying hard to evade its responsibility for the delayed provision of the lwr project and any compensation for the resultant electricity loss.
If one side fails to meet its obligation in inter-state relations, it should compensate the other side for the loss resulting from non-compliance. It is the acknowledged norm and being practiced among the countries and is not subject to any alteration with the change in power.
The LWR issue is a product of the political deal between the DPRK and the U.S.
When an attention is paid to the fact that the DPRK-U.S. agreed framework is calling for simultaneous actions on both sides with a main emphasis on the DPRK's nuclear freeze in return for the U.S. provision of LWR reactors, the U.S. may know well what consequences would be entailed by its practices intended to backtrack from its obligations to provide LWRs and make a bargaining over the issue of compensating for the electricity loss.
The DPRK can not remain a passive onlooker to this loss.
The U.S. can never evade its responsibility for the provision of LWRs and compensation for the electricity loss.
Anniversary of start of gigantic nature-harnessing projects marked
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- It is 55 years since a torch was lit to start gigantic nature-harnessing projects in Korea.
On May 21, Juche 35 (1946), late President Kim Il Sung visited the site of the Pothong River improvement project and took a shovel at the head of builders.
The project was finished in a matter of 55 days. Over 8 km-long new canal was built and a pleasure ground covering over 300 hectares made its appearance along the canal.
The land management has steadily progressed in the whole period of socialist construction in the DPRK.
Over the last 55 years many monumental edifices have risen in different parts of the country and the area of cultivated land and forests has increased several times. land realignment projects were carried out in Kangwon, North Phyongan and South Hwanghae provinces, changing the appearance of vast plains beyond recognition.
Tideland reclamation resulted in linking hundreds of islets to the coast and shortening the coast line by thousands of km.
Motorways were constructed between Pyongyang and Kaesong, Pyongyang and Wonsan, Pyongyang and Nampho and Pyongyang and Hyangsan.
Timber forests, economic forests, reserve forests and ornamental forests were created on all the mountains which cover over 80 per cent of the country's territory to comprehensively harness forest resources.
Great efforts have been exerted for the improvement of rivers and streams. as a result, such big rivers as Taedong, Amnok, Tuman and Jaeryong rivers and small rivers play a big role in the development of the national economy and the improvement of the standard of people's living.
The West Sea Barrage was built in the lower reaches of the Taedong River and Mirim and Ponghwa barrages stand along the river.
Thousands of large power stations including the Anbyon Youth Power Station and the Thaechon Power Station and minor ones were constructed.
A total 20,000-km embankments were built and over 12,000 hectares of forests created to protect dykes across the country.
More than 800 km-long waterways were built. They include waterway from the west sea barrage to Sinchon, Kangryong and Ongjin, waterway from the Thaechon Power Station to Unjon, Jongju and Kwaksan, and waterway from Ryesong River to Yonbaek plain.
The completion of the Kaechon-lake Thaesong waterway project would make it possible to supply tens of thousands of jongmi (one jongmi equals 10,000 cubic metres of water) to fields and industrial establishments. thousands of man-made lakes and reservoirs including Unpha, Sohung and Yonphung lakes made their appearance.
Wind break forests, dikes and other protection facilities were built along the coasts.
Land construction is now under way as a mass movement in the DPRK.
S. Korean unionists vow to fight for vital rights
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- At least 1,000 unionists under the South Korean Confederation of Trade Unions held a rally in Seoul on May 19 and vowed to wage an allout struggle for vital rights of workers in the spirit of the May 18 Kwangju popular resistance, according to the Seoul-based MBC.
Noting that hundreds of thousands of workers lost their jobs because of the restructuring forced by the international monetary fund and workers in the informal sector are in a miserable plight, the unionists urged the authorities and businessmen to stop their unilateral restructuring.
They also demanded that the chief of the police office immediately step down, bearing the responsibility for repressing the strike of Daewoo Motor unionists by force.
Message of condolence to Yemeni President
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- Kim Yong Nam, President of the presidium of the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly, Saturday sent a message of condolence to Ali Abdullah Saleh, President of the Republic of Yemen, over the death of his elder brother Mohamed Abdullah Saleh, commander of the central security force.
Upon hearing the sad news that his elder brother passed away, the message expressed deep condolences to the President and through him to the bereaved family of the deceased.
Gift to Kim Jong Il
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- Leader Kim Jong Il received a gift from the secretary general of the International Institute of the Juche Idea.
The gift was handed to an official concerned by secretary general Kenichi Ogami on a visit to Korea.
Gift to Kim Jong Il from Chinese women's delegation
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- Leader Kim Jong Il received a gift from the delegation of the All-China Women's Federation on a visit to Korea.
It was handed to Choe Thae Bok, secretary of the central committee of the Workers' Party of Korea by head of the delegation Basang, vice-president of the federation and deputy secretary of the Tibet autonomous regional committee of the Communist Party of China.
Choe Thae Bok meets Chinese women's delegation
Pyongyang, May 21 (KCNA) -- Choe Thae Bok, secretary of the central committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, today met and had a conversation with the delegation of the All-China Women's Federation led by its vice-president Basang who is deputy secretary of the Tibet autonomous regional committee of the Communist Party of China on a visit to Korea.