30View
13m 41sLenght
Rating

North Korea Carries Out Apparent Nuclear Test The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK; Chosŏn'gŭl: 조선민주주의인민공화국; Chosŏn Minjujuŭi Inmin Konghwaguk), commonly called North Korea ( listen), is a country in East Asia, in the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital is Pyongyang, the country's largest city by both land area and population. The Amnok River and the Tumen River form the international border between North Korea and the People's Republic of China. A small section of the Tumen River also lies along the border between North Korea and the Russian Federation, technically following the river's thalweg.[7] The Korean Demilitarized Zone forms the boundary between North Korea and South Korea. The legitimacy of this border is not accepted by either side, as both states claim to be the legitimate government of the entire country. The Korean peninsula was governed by the Korean Empire from the late 19th century to the early 20th century, until it was annexed by the Empire of Japan in 1910. After the surrender of Japan at the end of World War II, Japanese rule ceased. The Korean peninsula was divided into two occupied zones in 1945, with the northern half of the peninsula occupied by the Soviet Union and the southern half by the United States. A United Nations--supervised election held in 1948 led to the creation of separate Korean governments for the two occupation zones: the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in the north, and the Republic of Korea in the south. The conflicting claims of sovereignty led to the Korean War in 1950. An armistice in 1953 committed both to a cease-fire, but the two countries remain officially at war because a formal peace treaty was never signed.[8] Both states were accepted into the United Nations in 1991.[9] North Korea's political parties include the Workers' Party of Korea, the Korean Social Democratic Party and the Chondoist Chongu Party; there are also some independent deputies. The three political parties participate in the Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland led by the Workers' Party of Korea.[10] The government follows the Juche ideology of self-reliance, initiated by the country's first President, Kim Il-sung. After his death, Kim Il-sung was declared the country's Eternal President. Juche became the official state ideology, replacing Marxism--Leninism, when the country adopted a new constitution in 1972.[11][12] In 2009, references to Communism (Chosŏn'gŭl: 공산주의) were removed from the country's constitution.[13] Education in North Korea is universal and state funded, with a claimed national literacy rate of 99%.[14] The country has a national medical service and claims to offer free healthcare. Conflicting accounts report that patients must pay.[14] Many hospitals lack basic medicine, equipment, running water, and electricity due to economic problems and minimal budget allocation; at approximately 1 dollar per person per year, lower than that of most African countries.[15] Housing and food rations traditionally have been heavily subsidized.[14] The means of production are owned by the state through state-run enterprises and collectivized farms.[14] Food output is one of the lowest worldwide, with the UN estimating 16 million people requiring food aid.[16][17] North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il adopted Songun, or "military-first" policy in order to strengthen the country and its government.[18] North Korea is the world's most militarized country, with a total of 9,495,000 active, reserve, and paramilitary personnel. Its active duty army of 1.21 million is the 4th largest in the world, after China, the U.S., and India.[19] It is a nuclear-weapons state and has an active space program.[20][21][22] With the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991, North Korea lost a major trading partner and strategic ally. A combination of a series of heavy flooding and poor economic decisions led to the North Korean famine, which lasted from 1994 to 1998 and killed an estimated 240,000 to 1,000,000 people.[23][24] As a result of its isolation it is sometimes known as the "Hermit kingdom",[25] a name once given to its predecessor, the Korean Empire. Although North Korea is officially a socialist republic[26] and elections are held, it has been described as a totalitarian and Stalinist dictatorship[35] with an elaborate cult of personality around the Kim family. Also, the Economist Intelligence Unit, a private business based in the United Kingdom, ranked it as the lowest country in the Democracy Index. Finally, Amnesty International[36][37] and Human Rights Watch[38][39] report of severe restrictions on human rights but the government rejects these claims.[40][41][42] text Wikipedia