NK weekly-domestic news
Summary of domestic news in North Korea this week
SEOUL, June 30 (Yonhap) -- The following is a summary of domestic news in North Korea this week.
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Pyongyang renovates N. Korea-China friendship tower ahead of armistice anniversary
SEOUL -- North Korea has completed renovation of a tower symbolizing its friendship with China as the 70th anniversary of the armistice that ended the 1950-53 Korean War approaches, the North's state media said Thursday.
A ceremony marking the completion of the project, which was carried out upon North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's order, took place in Pyongyang on Wednesday, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
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N. Korea discusses grain output in follow-up measure after key party meeting
SEOUL -- North Korea held a Cabinet meeting earlier this week to discuss follow-up measures for policy goals laid out in a recent key party meeting, such as increasing agricultural production, the North's state media said Thursday.
A two-day plenary meeting of the Cabinet's Party Committee wrapped up Wednesday, attended by participants, including Premier Kim Tok-hun and Vice Premier Pak Jong-gun, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
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N. Korea braces for possible monsoon damage
SEOUL -- North Korea has drawn up precautionary measures to minimize damage from the monsoon season with a focus on crop protection, state media said Wednesday, amid concerns that heavy rains could worsen the North's food situation.
Officials have swiftly carried out measures to prevent damage from downpours, as well as natural disasters stemming from climate change based on what it called a "scientific" analysis of such phenomena, the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.
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(LEAD) N. Korea slams Japan for continued demand for resolution of abductee issue
SEOUL -- North Korea condemned Japan on Wednesday for its repeated call for the resolution of the North's abduction of Japanese nationals decades ago, claiming that such a stance runs counter to Tokyo's hope for a summit with Pyongyang without preconditions.
Ri Pyong-dok, a researcher at the Institute for Japan Studies of the North's foreign ministry, said the abductee issue has been "completely, finally and irreversibly" settled, accusing Japan of bringing the "unfeasible" issue to the fore, according to the North's state media.
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Mass rallies in N. Korea against U.S. held on Korean War anniversary
SEOUL -- More than 120,000 people participated in mass rallies in the North Korean capital Pyongyang to denounce what they claim is a "war provocation of aggression" by the United States on the 73rd anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War, the North's state media said Monday.
The Sunday rallies were attended by workers and youth, as well as secretaries of the North's ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) Ri Il-hwan and Pak Thae-song, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
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N. Korea warns Korean Peninsula close to 'brink of nuclear war'
SEOUL -- North Korea's foreign ministry on Monday accused Seoul and Washington of pushing tensions to "the brink of a nuclear war" akin to the 1950-53 Korean War, saying it will continue to bolster its self-defensive capabilities.
In a research report released by the foreign ministry's Institute for American Studies, North Korea likened the current military tensions in the region to the night before the outbreak of the Korean War as it slammed the United States and South Korea for their "delusional anti-communist military confrontation" and "rhetorical threats."
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