N. Koreans Told To Prepare For War (1/5/04)
33-Page Manual Was Issued Last April
Jan 5, 2005 9:14 am US/Eastern
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) North Korea has ordered its citizens to be ready for a protracted war against the United States, issuing guidelines on evacuating to underground bunkers with weapons, food and portraits of leader Kim Jong Il.
The 33-page “Detailed Wartime Guidelines,” published in South Korea’s Kyunghyang newspaper on Wednesday and verified by Seoul, was issued April 7, 2004, at a time when the communist regime was claiming it was Washington’s next target following the Iraq war.
The manual—the first such North Korean document made public in the outside world—was signed by Kim Jong Il in his capacity as chairman of the Central Military Committee of the ruling Workers’ Party. That ended speculation over whether Kim has assumed the top military post following the 1994 death of his father, President Kim Il Sung.
Analysts said the guidelines reflected Pyongyang’s fear over a possible U.S. military strike amid stalled talks on its nuclear weapons programs. They said the guidelines were also meant to whip up a sense of crisis among its 22 million people, reportedly growing discontent amid economic hardship.
“The United States has cooked up suspicion over our nuclear programs and is escalating an offensive of international pressure to strangle and destroy our republic,” the booklet said. “If this tactic doesn’t work, it plots to use this (nuclear) problem as an excuse for armed invasion.”
Kyunghyang did not clarify where it acquired the document classified as “top secret.” Seoul’s National Intelligence Service said in a one-sentence statement: “We believe the document reflects North Korea’s wartime preparations.”
The manual urged the military to build restaurants, wells, restrooms and air purifiers in underground bunkers, which government offices and military units will move into if war breaks out.
When North Koreans evacuate to underground facilities, they should make sure that they take the portraits, plaster busts and bronze statues of Kim and his parents so that they can “protect” them in a special room, the guidelines say.
The Kim family has ruled North Korea for more than a half century, creating a powerful personality cult. Portraits of Kim and his father hang side-by-side on the walls of every house.....
LOL I can just imagine the libs if our government suggested we add a portrait of Pres. Bush to our emergency kits.
North Korea has ordered its citizens to be ready for a protracted war against the United States, issuing guidelines on evacuating to underground bunkers with weapons, food and portraits of leader Kim Jong Il.
all4one- where is little Kim these days?
Also note that Chinese troops have massed on the north korean border.
Yep, I'm going to agree with you on "sabre rattling."
The situation in North Korea should be monitored
carefully all the time, though -- and it is.
I wonder how deep and extensive that underground
bunker system is?