Following a lavish celebration of the 80th anniversary of the ruling party’s establishment, North Korea has been vigorously promoting the diplomatic activities of leader Kim Jong Un, with study sessions touting improved relations with Russia as one of Kim’s signature achievements.
A source in North Korea told Daily NK recently that the Central Committee’s publicity and information department distributed material for the October study session titled “a great victory on the diplomatic front” to party committees at all levels.
“Today’s victory on the diplomatic front resulted from the Workers’ Party of Korea showcasing the legitimacy of its ideology and policy line. Under the leadership of Comrade Kim Jong Un, Socialist North Korea has in only a brief time become a powerful country that’s getting noticed by the international community,” the study material said.
The study material went on to make the self-congratulatory claim that North Korea is gaining international recognition as a military power and that its expanded diplomatic relations have boosted its national prestige.
The material quoted the text of a joint statement between the Workers’ Party of Korea and United Russia (Russia’s ruling party) to stress that “the unshakable friendship of United Russia is the basis of our development into an autonomous power.”
“The United Russia Party expressed firm support for the measures taken by the leadership of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to bolster the country’s defense capabilities,” the state-run Korean Central News Agency said while reporting on the joint statement on Oct. 9.
This remark is widely understood to mean that Russia condones North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons.
“Through the spirit of putting the state first, we’re on the verge of becoming a socialist power that the world will look up to. All officials, party members and workers must treat the party’s plan to strengthen national defense as the guiding light of their life and struggle so that we can become an unrivaled and invincible power,” the study material urged.
“We must proactively accept the leadership of Kim Jong Un on the fronts of national defense, economy and ideology,” the material declared, while calling on “the entire nation to step forward in unity to join the great march toward building a powerful country.”
Some citizens skeptical despite regime propaganda
But some North Koreans have mixed feelings about the regime’s recent diplomatic actions.
“Television footage of Kim Jong Un meeting officials from China and Russia has made some people take pride in the growing strength of our Republic. But others point out that his actions haven’t brought meaningful change to our lives,” the source said.
Some North Koreans acknowledge that Kim has been more diplomatically active than his father or grandfather but attribute that to geopolitical changes rather than to North Korea’s rising stature.
“Given frequent coverage of the China-U.S. conflict and Russia’s war on television and in newspapers, many people think North Korea has benefited from recent turmoil in the world. But the main complaint is that people’s lives haven’t changed,” the source added.
Some citizens darkly point to the national sacrifices behind the diplomatic achievements touted by the regime.
“Some comment that this flurry of diplomatic activity wouldn’t be possible without somebody’s sacrifice. Others say these are at best pyrrhic victories when we consider all the Korean soldiers who lost their lives in Russia,” the source remarked.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: dailynk.com
