Summary of domestic news in North Korea this week

NK weekly-domestic news

Summary of domestic news in North Korea this week

SEOUL, Feb. 24 (Yonhap) -- The following is a summary of domestic news in North Korea this week.

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In letter to quake-hit Syria, N. Korean leader wishes swift recovery work: media

SEOUL -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has sent a letter to his Syrian counterpart hoping the country makes a speedy recovery from damage wrought by a devastating earthquake that recently struck the region, Pyongyang's state media said Friday.

In the message sent to President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday, Kim also expressed "deep appreciation" to Syria for extending warm congratulations on the occasion of the 81st birth anniversary of his late father Kim Jong-il last week, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

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N. Korea says it conducted 'strategic cruise missile' drills this week

SEOUL -- North Korea has conducted "strategic cruise missile" launching drills, with the "war posture" of the country's nuclear combat forces clearly demonstrated, its state media said Friday, as South Korea and the United States held joint military exercises this week.

A subunit of the North's strategic cruise missile unit fired four "Hwasal-2 strategic cruise missiles" from an area of the northeastern city of Kim Chaek in North Hamgyong Province toward the East Sea at dawn Thursday, according to the North's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

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(LEAD) N. Korea warns continued 'U.S. hostility' will be considered 'declaration of war'

SEOUL -- A North Korean foreign ministry official on Friday warned that Pyongyang will regard what it claims to be "hostile practices" from the United States as a "declaration of war" against the reclusive country.

Kwon Jong-gun, director-general for U.S. affairs at the ministry, also called on Washington to halt its deployment of strategic assets to Korea and combined drills with Seoul to prevent the "vicious cycle" of escalating military tension on the peninsula, in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

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N. Korea to hold key party meeting amid severe food shortages

SEOUL -- North Korea is expected to hold a key party meeting later this month to solely discuss agricultural issues amid keen attention to whether it will unveil any practical measures to address its serious food shortages.

The secretive country earlier announced its plan to hold a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) in late February to discuss "immediate farming issues and long-term goals for the agricultural development." It stopped short of specifying the date.

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N. Korea slams Japan for holding annual event on Dokdo

SEOUL -- North Korea's state media on Wednesday slammed Japan for holding an annual event that renewed its claim on South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo, calling the event "an undisguised agitation for aggression."

Dokdo, which lies closer to South Korea in the body of water between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, has long been a thorn in relations between Seoul and Tokyo. Since 2006, Japan has held an annual event on Dokdo.

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N. Korea slams U.N. chief's 'unfair, unbalanced' stance on its missile launches

SEOUL -- North Korea on Wednesday denounced U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for taking what it says is an "unfair and unbalanced" stance over its recent missile launches.

The North's foreign ministry issued a statement condemning Guterres for his latest criticism of the North's launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) over the weekend.

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(5th LD) N. Korea fires 2 short-range ballistic missiles toward East Sea: S. Korean military

SEOUL -- North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) toward the East Sea on Monday, Seoul's military said, a day after South Korea and the United States staged joint air drills, involving B-1B bombers, in response to the North's long-range missile launch.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the launch from the Sukchon area in South Pyongan Province between 7 a.m. and 7:11 a.m., and that the missiles flew some 390 kilometers and 340 km, respectively.

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