Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

North Korea organized a `Grand Memorial' for the fiftieth anniversary of the death of Kim Jung-sook (Kim Jong-il's mother) on September 22, urging its citizens to follow the example of Kim Jung-sook, and also encouraged a show of `absolute loyalty for Kim Jong-il' and `participation in the creation of a superpower.'

Kim Jong-il went on an inspection tour of factories, power stations. fish farms, and amusement parks in South Hamkyung province from Sept. 22nd to the 24th, emphasizing and urging progress in power generation and in the chemical industry.

High-ranking cadres paid a visit and laid wreaths of flowers upon graves of Kim Jong-il's ancestors (Kim Bo-hyun, Kim Hyung-jik, Kang Ban-sok) on Chusok. Pyongyang Broadcasting announced that `the people were allowed to visit graves of their ancestors and had a happy holiday playing traditional games thanks to Kim Jong-il'.

Honorary chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly Lee Jong-ok was given a state funeral upon his death at age 83, organized by the State Funeral Council led by the current committee chairman Kim Young-nam, and was interred at the Mausoleum of Patriots.

A spokesperson for the North Korean foreign ministry announced that North Korea `will not engage in missile launches during the course of the US-North Korea high-level talks,' in an interview with the Korea Central News Agency.

North Korean postponement of its missile launch was again emphasized by its foreign minister Paik Nam-soon in his speech at the 54th General Assembly of the United Nations, and he condemned the ROK's unification policy as a policy of confrontation and conflict, in addition to repeating North Korea's calls for the abolition of the ROK National Security Law.