Press conference at Russian embassy

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- A press conference was held at the Russian embassy in Pyongyang yesterday on the occasion of the second anniversary of the signing of the treaty of friendship, good-neighbourliness and cooperation between the DPRK and the Russian Federation. Present there were officials concerned, media reporters, foreign embassy officials and foreign correspondents.
    The participants looked round the photographs showing the historic Russian visit of leader Kim Jong Il.
    At the press conference Russian ambassador Andrei Karlov said that Russia-Korea relations are developing on good terms through the mutual visits of the two leaders and exchanges in various fields after the signing of the treaty.
    He expressed belief that the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries would further develop in the spirit of the treaty.
    Answers to questions were given at the press conference.

Reception given by Vietnamese ambassador

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- Vietnamese ambassador to the DPRK Do Thi Hoa hosted a reception at the embassy yesterday on the occasion of leader Kim Jong Il's birthday. The ambassador in her speech said that she is pleased to celebrate respected Kim Jong Il's birthday with the Korean people and sincerely wished him good health.
    Kim Jong Il, who was born and brought up amid stern tempest, is leading the Korean revolution to victory while carrying forward the revolutionary cause of Juche started by President Kim Il Sung, she noted.
    She recalled that the friendly relations between the DPRK and Vietnam, which were provided by President Kim Il Sung and President Ho Chi Minh, are steadily growing stronger thanks to the deep concern of Kim Jong Il and leading cadres of Vietnam.
    She expressed firm belief that the good traditional relations of friendship and cooperation between the two countries would be boosted in the interests of the two peoples in the future under the care of the leaders of the two countries.
    Choe Thae Bok, secretary of the central committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, in his speech said Kim Jong Il's birth as the son of guerrillas on Mt. Paektu, a holy mountain of revolution, was a great national auspicious event that promised a bright future of Korea.
    Pointing out that the DPRK-Vietnam relations are long-standing friendly and cooperative ones based on the close relationship Kim Il Sung forged with Ho Chi Minh, he stressed that the Korean people would as always exert positive efforts to boost the friendly and cooperative relations with the Vietnamese people.
    He wished the Vietnamese people fresh success in their work to achieve the cause of the industrialization and modernization of the country under the guidance of the communist party of Vietnam along the road of socialism chosen by Ho Chi Minh.

KCNA on U.S. national defense budget

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- The U.S. President reportedly submitted to the congress a national defense budget bill for fiscal 2003 that envisages military spending worth 379 billion U.S. dollars. The budget, the largest in the last two decades, accounts for 20 percent of the U.S. national budget, or an increase of 14.5 percent over the previous year.
    This is an expression of the dominationist nature of the U.S. to have the largest military muscle in the world and exercise political, economic and military influence as the leader of the world in the 21st century.
    The U.S. projected largest-ever military spending is causing deep apprehensions of the international community as it is timed to coincide with the disclosure of its undisguised criminal intention to escalate the "anti-terrorism war" worldwide.
    The U.S. does not conceal its vaulting ambition to put the world under its control in reliance upon its huge military capabilities.
    The Bush administration is working out such a huge national defense budget bill as that in the era of the cold war and inciting unilateral militarism in a bid to threaten the international community that advocates a multi-polar world and take actions against the countries disobedient to the U.S. as well known, the U.S. has the world's largest military spending.
    It is citing somebody's "threat' as a pretext for submitting the national defense budget, or an increase of 48 billion u.s. dollars as compared with the military budget for the present fiscal year.
    The U.S. loudmouthed "threat" from somebody is a crafty trick to justify its increased military expenditure.
    Though it has the largest number of weapons of mass destruction in the world, the U.S. is sharply increasing military expenditure. This clearly proves that the U.S., "empire of devil," is posing a grave threat to the world peace and stability.
    Such a military adventure of the U.S. to sharply increase military expenditure and escalate the "anti-terrorism war" in a bid to spark the second cold war is bound to face a stern punishment by the world public.

10-day film show opens

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- The 10-day film show opened to celebrate February 16, the birthday of leader Kim Jong Il. Screened at all the cinema houses and halls across the country during the period will be films dealing with the immortal feats of Kim Jong Il and showing the national pride and self-respect of the Korean people.
    Among them are documentary films such as "Care Shown to Make Their Lives Shine," "Under the Leadership of the Great Brilliant Commander" and "Korea, I Will Glorify Thee."
    Included in feature films are sequels of the multi-part feature film "The Nation and Destiny," which were produced as masterpieces of the times, "The People in Jagang Province," "The Story about Flower," "The Oath of Soldiers," "Wolmi Island" and "The Autobiography of the Youth."
    A national opening ceremony was held at the people's palace of culture yesterday.
    Present there were Jong Ha Chol, secretary of the c.c., the Workers' Party of Korea, Kang Nung Su, minister of culture, and others.

Film show on establishment of diplomatic relations between DPRK and Spain

Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- A film show was held here yesterday on the occasion of the 1st anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the DPRK and Spain. Present there were Jon Yong Jin, vice-chairman of the Korean Committee for Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries and chairman of the DPRK-Spain Friendship Association, members of the association and working people in the city.
After the speech of the chairman of the association, the participants saw a Korean feature film "The Past, the Present and the Future."

Japan urged to drop hostile policy toward DPRK

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- Japan's hostile policy toward the DPRK is based on the idea of militarist domination to invade and dominate Korea and Japanize the Koreans, says Rodong Sinmun today in a by-lined article. Japan's idea of dominating the Korean peninsula grew strong after the "Meiji Restoration" and got all the more pronounced at the stage of its capitalist development, the article notes, and goes on:
    The Japanese reactionary ruling quarters were influenced by the brigandish logic of aggression that if one has a colony one will "prosper" and if one fails to do so one is bound to go downhill. They singled out the Korean peninsula as a major target of their aggression.
    It is impossible to make one's way to the continent without seizing Korea and Korea is, indeed, a "silk road" for Japan's overseas expansion. Such idea held sway among the Japanese imperialists through their military occupation and rule over Korea for more than 40 years in the past century.
    The Japanese militarists' idea of invading and dominating Korea remains unchanged.
    The "military threat" from the DPRK peddled by Japan while zealously following the U.S. policy of stifling the DPRK is no more than a pretext to step up the preparations for war of overseas aggression in real earnest.
    Lurking behind Japan's hostile policy toward the DPRK is its sinister intention to foster antagonism between the north and the south in a bid to keep Korea divided permanently and push the Korean nation to ruin.
    It is the predominant idea of Japan that if Korea is reunified, it will be a big obstacle in the way of carrying out Japan's policy of continental aggression.
    Japan's escalated hostile policy toward the DPRK is a factor of straining the relations of confrontation between the DPRK and Japan and increasing the tensions on the Korean peninsula and the root cause of military conflicts.
    Japan should redress its past crimes and drop its hostile policy toward the DPRK. This is the way of terminating the hostile relations, ties of confrontation between the DPRK and Japan.
    This will do Japan good in many aspects.

Concert of foreign students

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- Foreign students studying in the DPRK visited the Pyongyang cultural exhibition yesterday on the occasion of the birthday of leader Kim Jong Il. Looking round famous works of Kim Jong Il, they expressed admiration at his brilliant wisdom and outstanding ideological and theoretical activities.
    Then, they had a concert to celebrate the birthday of Kim Jong Il.
    Foreign students from China, Laos, Vietnam and Mongolia studying at Kim Il Sung University, Kim Hyong Jik University of Education and Pyongyang University of Music and Dance staged various numbers including a poem and song "Our Father," a vocal solo and Pangchang "Thunder on Jong Il Peak," a chorus "Confetti of Best Wishes," a female chorus "Breaking Through Clouds to See the Dear General" and a small chorus "The General on a Galloping White Horse."

Anti-U.S. rally in S. Korea

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- An anti-U.S. rally was held in Seoul on Feb. 2 to voice opposition to the threat of war, the interference in others' internal affairs, economic aggression and plunder and Bush's visit to South Korea under the sponsorship of the "national people's solidarity for national independence, democracy and people's right to existence." Participating in the rally were over 700 workers, students, poor people and members of social organizations.
    At the rally speakers termed the remarks made by Bush in his "state of the union address" singling out the north as a member of the "axis of evil" and driving the situation on the korean peninsula to the brink of war an "act of threatening the Korean nation's right to existence." The struggle against Bush's visit is a struggle to protect the nation's right to existence, they added.
    If Bush, defying the South Korean people's opposition, set foot on the land of South Korea, he "would not be able to go back on his own feet," they warned, reiterating their strong will to struggle against it.
    The rally adopted a resolution on denouncing U.S. moves to escalate the war, demanding it stop forcing South Korea to purchase its arms, calling for the normalization of the DPRK-U.S. relations and halting the dismissal of members of the Daewoo Motor Trade Union, etc.
    The solidarity decided to call a press conference to protest Bush's visit and hold a demonstration and protest in front of the U.S. embassy and its military base in Ryongsan. And it also decided to mobilize all the forces to stage an anti-bush campaign during his visit and stage an all-people rally to denounce Bush with tens of thousands of people attending.

Bush administration criticized in S. Korea

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- The Bush administration was criticized in South Korea for plotting to ignite the second war on the Korean peninsula. The council for national reconciliation and independent reunification in a statement on Feb. 1 recalled that in his "state of the union address" Bush designated some countries including the north as the "axis of evil" and openly revealed his intention to take a military action against them. If Bush attacks the north, it means the outbreak of the second Korean war, the statement said, and added:
    It is a preposterous attempt that Bush is putting pressure upon the north and threatening to attack it under the pretext of its possession of weapons of mass destruction. And it is nothing but a bid to find a pretext for pressure and war against the north.
    Meanwhile, Ri In Su, co-chairman of the headquarters of the people's movement for the withdrawal of the U.S. troops, in a commentary titled "our principal enemy--the United States" on Feb. 5 said that if the U.S. unleashes a war of aggression on the Korean peninsula all the people should wage a death-defying resistance to the U.S.
    The solidarity for the implementation of the south-north joint declaration in South Korea in a statement on Feb. 5 said: National assemblymen from the ruling and opposition parties declared that the Bush administration is the principal offender who is leading the inter-Korean relations to rupture and expressed "opposition to the U.S. military action and expansion of war, respect for the principle of resolving the national issue between the south and the north, parties concerned, and expectation of the peaceful progress of the DPRK-U.S. relations." This is an act conforming with the interests and demand of the Korean nation living in the era of the June 15 joint declaration.
    Now that the U.S. is unreasonably interfering in the Korean national issue, the political camp should take on a new look to suit the era of the June 15 joint declaration.

Commemorative stamps issued

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- Various kinds of new stamps were issued in the DPRK on the occasion of the February holiday, the birthday of leader Kim Jong Il. Among them is the stamp (30mm42mm) "Floral Basket of Best Wishes" reflecting the people's best wishes for his good health.
    The floral basket is made of the two immortal flowers Kimilsungia and Kimjongilia, magnolia and other beautiful flowers.
    Written on the red ribbon of the basket is "we sincerely wish the great leader comrade Kim Jong Il good health."
    The sheet (84mm128mm) titled "celebration of the great leader comrade Kim Jong Il's birthday" carries a portrait of Kim Jong Il praised as the sun of the 21st century. Printed on another sheet (125mm100mm) titled "general and soldiers" is a portrait of Kim Jong Il acknowledging the salute of soldiers on guard at the Panmunjom mission of the Korean People's Army and words and music of the first bar of the song "Dear General, Where Are You".
    Among the new stamps is a sheetlet (136mm104mm) titled "celebration of the birthday of the bright star of Mt. Paektu" carrying pictures of President Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il and Kim Jong Suk.

Origin of folk song "Arirang"

    Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- A mass gymnastic and artistic performance "Arirang" is nearing completion in Pyongyang. It will present kaleidoscopic scenes to the melodious tune of folk song "Arirang". "Arirang" is one of famous Korean folk songs known to the world.
    There are many stories of it.
    The word "Arirang" originated in these stories.
    Typical of them are biographical, geographical and etymological stories.
    All stories became popular among the people for their vivid reflection of human feelings, developing into a series of songs.
    The Korean people sang "Arirang" in tears before the liberation of the country (august 1945). But they are now singing "Arirang for Reunification," "Arirang for Army-People Unity" and "Arirang for Prosperity," demonstrating national pride and dignity full of joy and optimism.
    The mass gymnastic and artistic performance will be a masterpiece based on the folk song "Arirang" which has been refined by national sentiment and soul with history.

Congratulatory message to prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago

Pyongyang, February 8 (KCNA) -- Hong Song Nam, premier of the DPRK cabinet, sent a congratulatory message to Patrick Manning on his assumption of office as prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago. Expressing the conviction that the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries would develop on good terms in the future, too, the message wished him great success in his responsible work.