Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Kim Jong Il, accompanied by KPA Generals Ri Myong Su, Hyon Chol Hae, Pak Jae Gyong and Ri Yong Chol, paid an inspection visit to KPA unit no. 4302 (date unreported) and ordered soldiers to beef up their combat capability. (May 2, Central Broadcasting Station).

Pyongyang Broadcasting Station claimed in its report on damages caused by the recent explosion at Ryongchon railway station, "according to the preliminary investigation, 8,100 houses were destroyed, leaving 150 people dead and 1,300 wounded. A preliminary estimate of the damage stands at about 48 billion won, or 300 million Euros." It also went on to propagandize, "when the explosion occurred, Choe Yong Il and Jon Tong Sik, workers at the County Procurement Shop, died a heroic death under the collapsing building, as they ran back into the shop to rescue portraits of President Kim Il Sung and leader Kim Jong Il." (April 26, 28)

A foreign ministry spokesperson criticized Washington, saying, "In the so-called annual report on terrorism released by the U.S. State Department, the DPRK is once again listed as a terror-sponsoring country. However, it is the Bush administration that is demonstrating the pinnacle of terrorism through its illegal invasion of Iraq and a campaign of mass slaughter whose cruelty is unfathomable." (May 2, Central Broadcasting Station)

The Central Broadcasting Station criticized Tokyo on April 26: "The Japanese Diet has embarked on deliberation regarding seven emergency legislations, including a so-called Nationals Protection Law, among others, in a bid to legalize the Self-Defense Force's mounting military strikes against any country in the world at any time at the order of its prime minister."

The Central Broadcasting Station reported on April 27, "Various groups in South Korea have issued statements expressing condolences regarding the victims of the Ryongchon explosion, urging the South Korean authorities, all groups and people to actively join in the efforts for disaster recovery."

Pyongyang Broadcasting Station voiced criticism on April 30, quoting a Rodong Sinmun editorial dated April 30: "In a fascistic trial against Kang Tae Woon, a former adviser of the Democratic Workers' Party, held several days ago, the Seoul District Court in South Korea pronounced an outrageous sentences of 6 years in prison, a 4-year license suspension, and a 27.9 million won penalty on charges of a breach of Security Law."

The Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland issued its newsletter, saying, "All political parties and people of all walks of life in South Korea are urged to crush the nation's U.S.-forced maneuver to dispatch additional troops to Iraq and join the struggle to defend the nation's sovereign rights." (April 28, Pyongyang Broadcasting Station)