On the 29th, the Ministry of Unification criticized North Korea’s test launch of a submarine-launched cruise missile (SLCM) the day before, saying, “As long as North Korea wastes its scarce resources on weapons development and provocation, improvements in people’s lives will be nothing more than a pipe dream even after 10 years.”
Koo Byung-sam, spokesperson for the Ministry of Unification, revealed this during a regular briefing, saying, “North Korea has recently emphasized improving people’s lives by promoting a plan to modernize 20 local factories each year for the next 10 years, under the ’20×10′ local development policy.”
Spokesperson Koo urged, “The North Korean authorities need to stop their path of provocation and isolation and choose the right path that can fundamentally improve the difficult conditions of their residents.”
Furthermore, regarding the submarine-launched cruise missile revealed by North Korea, Spokesperson Koo stated, “The defense authorities will analyze its specifications and other details.”
Regarding the recent claim by a private research organization that North Korean residents attempted to establish a free democratic party, Spokesperson Koo responded, “There is nothing to confirm from the perspective of the Ministry of Unification.”
However, he added, “Looking at the measures to control residents, such as the Anti-Counterrevolutionary Thought Culture Exclusion Law and the Pyongyang Language Protection Law, as well as the emphasis on children’s education during the nationwide mothers’ conference event at the end of last year, we speculate that there is a practical need to strongly control the relaxation that has appeared in North Korean society.”
By. Yoon Sun Choi
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