Korea, North

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Introduction - Korea, North:
Country	Korea, North
Background	An independent kingdom for much of its long history, Korea was occupied by Japan in 1905 following the Russo-Japanese War. Five years later, Japan formally annexed the entire peninsula. Following World War II, Korea was split with the northern half coming under Soviet-sponsored Communist domination. After failing in the Korean War (1950-53) to conquer the US-backed Republic of Korea (ROK) in the southern portion by force, North Korea (DPRK), under its founder President KIM Il-song, adopted a policy of ostensible diplomatic and economic self-reliance as a check against excessive Soviet or Communist Chinese influence. The DPRK demonized the US as the ultimate threat to its social system through state-funded propaganda, and molded political, economic, and military policies around the core ideological objective of eventual unification of Korea under Pyongyangs control. KIMs son, the current ruler KIM Jong Il, was officially designated as his fathers successor in 1980, assuming a growing political and managerial role until the elder KIMs death in 1994. After decades of economic mismanagement and resource misallocation, the DPRK since the mid-1990s has relied heavily on international aid to feed its population while continuing to expend resources to maintain an army of 1 million. North Koreas long-range missile development, as well as its nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons programs and massive conventional armed forces, are of major concern to the international community. In December 2002, following revelations that the DPRK was pursuing a nuclear weapons program based on enriched uranium in violation of a 1994 agreement with the US to freeze and ultimately dismantle its existing plutonium-based program, North Korea expelled monitors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In January 2003, it declared its withdrawal from the international Non-Proliferation Treaty. In mid-2003 Pyongyang announced it had completed the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel rods (to extract weapons-grade plutonium) and was developing a nuclear deterrent. Beginning in August 2003, North Korea, China, Japan, Russia, South Korea, and the US have participated in the Six-Party Talks aimed at resolving the stalemate over the DPRKs nuclear programs. North Korea pulled out of the talks in November 2005. It test-fired ballistic missiles in July 2006 and tested a nuclear weapon in October 2006. In October 2006, the DRPK announced that it would return to the Six-Party Talks. The Talks reconvened in December 2006.
Location - Korea, North:
Location	Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea
Geographic coordinates	40 00 N, 127 00 E
Map references	Asia
Area	total: 120,540 sq km land: 120,410 sq km water: 130 sq km
Area comparative	slightly smaller than Mississippi
Land boundaries	total: 1,673 km border countries: China 1,416 km, South Korea 238 km, Russia 19 km
Coastline	2,495 km
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm note: military boundary line 50 nm in the Sea of Japan and the exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea where all foreign vessels and aircraft without permission are banned
Climate	temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer
Terrain	mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m highest point: Paektu-san 2,744 m
Natural resources	coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower
Land use	arable land: 22.4% permanent crops: 1.66% other: 75.94% (2005)
Irrigated land	14,600 sq km (2003)
Natural hazards	late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall
Environment current issues	water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; waterborne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation
Environment international agreements	party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography note	strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated
People - Korea, North:
Population	23,301,725 (July 2007 est.)
Age structure	0-14 years: 23.3% (male 2,758,826/female 2,679,093) 15-64 years: 68.1% (male 7,852,282/female 8,024,429) 65 years and over: 8.5% (male 709,599/female 1,277,496) (2007 est.)
Median age	total: 32.4 years male: 30.9 years female: 33.8 years (2007 est.)
Population growth rate	0.785% (2007 est.)
Birth rate	15.06 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Death rate	7.21 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.979 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.555 male(s)/female total population: 0.945 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Infant mortality rate	total: 22.56 deaths/1,000 live births male: 24.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 20.84 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 71.92 years male: 69.18 years female: 74.8 years (2007 est.)
Total fertility rate	2.05 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Hiv aids adult prevalence rate	NA
Hiv aids people living with hiv aids	NA
Hiv aids deaths	NA
Nationality	noun: Korean(s) adjective: Korean
Ethnic groups	racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese
Religions	traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way) note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom
Languages	Korean
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99%
Government - Korea, North:
Country name	conventional long form: Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea conventional short form: North Korea local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk local short form: Choson abbreviation: DPRK
Government type	Communist state one-man dictatorship
Capital	name: Pyongyang geographic coordinates: 39 01 N, 125 45 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions	9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 4 municipalities (si, singular and plural) provinces: Chagang-do (Chagang), Hamgyong-bukto (North Hamgyong), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong), Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae), Hwanghae-namdo (South Hwanghae), Kangwon-do (Kangwon), Pyongan-bukto (North Pyongan), Pyongan-namdo (South Pyongan), Yanggang-do (Yanggang) municipalities: Kaesong-si (Kaesong), Najin Sonbong-si (Najin), Nampo-si (Nampo), Pyongyang-si (Pyongyang)
Independence	15 August 1945 (from Japan)
National holiday	Founding of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948)
Constitution	adopted 1948; completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992, and September 1998
Legal system	based on Prussian civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage	17 years of age; universal
Executive branch	chief of state: KIM Jong Il (since July 1994); note - on 3 September 2003, rubberstamp Supreme Peoples Assembly (SPA) reelected KIM Jong Il chairman of the National Defense Commission, a position accorded nations highest administrative authority; SPA reelected KIM Yong Nam president of its Presidium also with responsibility of representing state and receiving diplomatic credentials head of government: Premier KIM Yong Il (since 11 April 2007); Vice Premiers KWAK Pom Gi (since 5 September 1998), JON Sung Hun (since 3 September 2003), RO Tu Chol (since 3 September 2003) cabinet: Naegak (cabinet) members, except for Minister of Peoples Armed Forces, are appointed by SPA elections: last held in September 2003 (next to be held in September 2008) election results: KIM Jong Il and KIM Yong Nam were only nominees for positions and ran unopposed
Legislative branch	unicameral Supreme Peoples Assembly or Choego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 3 August 2003 (next to be held in August 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; ruling party approves a list of candidates who are elected without opposition; some seats are held by minor parties
Judicial branch	Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme Peoples Assembly)
Political parties and leaders	major party - Korean Workers Party or KWP [KIM Jong Il]; minor parties - Chondoist Chongu Party [RYU Mi Yong] (under KWP control), Social Democratic Party [KIM Yong Dae] (under KWP control)
Political pressure groups and leaders	none
International organization participation	ARF, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in the us	none; North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York
Diplomatic representation from the us	none; note - Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang represents the US as consular protecting power
Flag description	three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star
Economy - Korea, North:
Economy overview	North Korea, one of the worlds most centrally planned and isolated economies, faces desperate economic conditions. Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result of years of underinvestment and shortages of spare parts. Industrial and power output have declined in parallel. Due in part to severe summer flooding followed by dry weather conditions in the fall of 2006, the nation has suffered its 12th year of food shortages because of on-going systemic problems, including a lack of arable land, collective farming practices, and chronic shortages of tractors and fuel. Massive international food aid deliveries have allowed the people of North Korea to escape mass starvation since famine threatened in 1995, but the population continues to suffer from prolonged malnutrition and poor living conditions. Large-scale military spending eats up resources needed for investment and civilian consumption. In 2004, the regime formalized an arrangement whereby private farmers markets were allowed to begin selling a wider range of goods. It also permitted some private farming on an experimental basis in an effort to boost agricultural output. In October 2005, the regime reversed some of these policies by forbidding private sales of grains and reinstituting a centralized food rationing system. By December 2005, the regime terminated most international humanitarian assistance operations in North Korea (calling instead for developmental assistance only) and restricted the activities of remaining international and non-governmental aid organizations such as the World Food Program. External food aid now comes primarily from China and South Korea in the form of grants and long-term concessional loans. Firm political control remains the Communist governments overriding concern, which will likely inhibit the loosening of economic regulations.
Gdp purchasing power parity	$40 billion note: North Korea does not publish any reliable National Income Accounts data; the datum shown here is derived from purchasing power parity (PPP) GDP estimates for North Korea that were made by Angus MADDISON in a study conducted for the OECD; his figure for 1999 was extrapolated to 2006 using estimated real growth rates for North Koreas GDP and an inflation factor based on the US GDP deflator; the result was rounded to the nearest $10 billion (2006 est.)
Gdp official exchange rate	NA (2006 est.)
Gdp real growth rate	1.8% (2006 est.)
Gdp per capita ppp	$1,800 (2006 est.)
Gdp composition by sector	agriculture: 30% industry: 34% services: 36% (2002 est.)
Labor force	9.6 million
Labor force by occupation	agriculture: 36% industry and services: 64%
Unemployment rate	NA%
Population below poverty line	NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate consumer prices	NA%
Budget	revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA
Agriculture products	rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs
Industries	military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism
Industrial production growth rate	NA%
Electricity production	21.71 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity consumption	20.19 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity exports	0 kWh (2004)
Electricity imports	0 kWh (2004)
Oil production	138.5 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil consumption	25,000 bbl/day (2004)
Oil exports	NA bbl/day
Oil imports	23,520 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil proved reserves	0 bbl
Natural gas production	0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas consumption	0 cu m (2004 est.)
Exports	$1.34 billion f.o.b. (2005)
Exports commodities	minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments), textiles, agricultural and fishery products
Exports partners	China 35%, South Korea 24%, Thailand 9%, Japan 9% (2005)
Imports	$2.72 billion c.i.f. (2005)
Imports commodities	petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment, textiles, grain
Imports partners	China 42%, South Korea 28%, Russia 9%, Thailand 8% (2005)
Debt external	$12 billion (1996 est.)
Economic aid recipient	$NA; note - approximately 350,000 metric tons in food aid, worth approximately $118 million, through the World Food Program appeal in 2004, plus additional aid from bilateral donors and non-governmental organizations
Currency code	North Korean won (KPW)
Exchange rates	official: North Korean won per US dollar - 141 (2006), 170 (December 2004), 150 (December 2002), market: North Korean won per US dollar - 2,500-3,000 (December 2006)
Communications - Korea, North:
Fiscal year	calendar year
Telephones main lines in use	980,000 (2003)
Telephone system	general assessment: NA domestic: NA international: country code - 850; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Russian (Indian Ocean region); other international connections through Moscow and Beijing
Radio broadcast stations	AM 17 (including 11 stations of Korean Central Broadcasting Station; North Korea has a national intercom cable radio station wired throughout the country that is a significant source of information for the average North Korean citizen; it is wired into most residences and workplaces and carries news and commentary), FM 14, shortwave 14 (2006)
Television broadcast stations	4 (includes Korean Central Television, Mansudae Television, Korean Educational and Cultural Network, and Kaesong Television targeting South Korea) (2003)
Internet country code	.kp
Internet users	NA
Transportation - Korea, North:
Airports	77 (2006)
Airports with paved runways	total: 36 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 22 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2006)
Airports with unpaved runways	total: 41 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 7 (2006)
Heliports	22 (2006)
Pipelines	oil 154 km (2006)
Railways	total: 5,214 km standard gauge: 5,214 km 1.435-m gauge (3,500 km electrified) (2006)
Roadways	total: 31,200 km paved: 1,997 km unpaved: 29,203 km (1999 est.)
Waterways	2,250 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2007)
Merchant marine	total: 232 ships (1000 GRT or over) 983,182 GRT/1,370,104 DWT by type: bulk carrier 14, cargo 176, chemical tanker 1, container 4, livestock carrier 3, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 17, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 8, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: 60 (British Virgin Islands 1, China 1, Denmark 1, Egypt 2, Greece 1, India 1, Lebanon 6, Lithuania 1, Marshall Islands 1, Pakistan 3, Romania 11, Russia 1, Singapore 1, Syria 14, Turkey 4, UAE 6, US 3, Yemen 2) registered in other countries: 5 (Belize 2, Mongolia 3) (2006)
Ports and terminals	Chongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Kimchaek, Kosong, Najin, Nampo, Sinuiju, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Ungsang, Wonsan
Military - Korea, North:
Military branches	North Korean Peoples Army: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force; civil security forces (2005)
Military service age and obligation	17 years of age (2004)
Manpower available for military service	males age 17-49: 5,851,801 females age 17-49: 5,850,733 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service	males age 17-49: 4,810,831 females age 17-49: 4,853,270 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually	males age 18-49: 194,605 females age 17-49: 187,846 (2005 est.)
Refugees and internally displaced persons	IDPs: 50,000-250,000 (government repression and famine) (2006)
Military expenditures percent of gdp	NA
Trafficking in persons	current situation: North Korea is a source country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and sexual exploitation; North Koreas own system of political repression includes forced labor in a network of prison camps where an estimated 150,000 to 200,000 persons are incarcerated; the illegal status of North Koreans in China and other countries increases their vulnerability to trafficking schemes and sexual and physical abuse; North Koreans forcibly returned from China may be subject to hard labor in prison camps operated by the government tier rating: Tier 3 - North Korea does not fully comply with minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so
Disputes international	risking arrest, imprisonment, and deportation, tens of thousands of North Koreans cross into China to escape famine, economic privation, and political oppression; North Korea and China dispute the sovereignty of certain islands in Yalu and Tumen rivers; Military Demarcation Line within the 4-km wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953; periodic incidents in the Yellow Sea with South Korea which claims the Northern Limiting Line as a maritime boundary; North Korea supports South Korea in rejecting Japans claim to Liancourt Rocks (Tok-do/Take-shima)