Inter-Korean relations further deteriorate
Koreas crossing
Kim Jong Ungathered the Politburo of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party to talk about the economy and living conditions, state media said on Monday.
Neither Kim nor any of the other officials were wearing masks, and the coronavirus pandemic was not mentioned in the state media's report about the meeting.
Kim emphasised the importance of the country's chemical industry, including the production of fertiliser. For North Korea, it is a vital commodity due to the country's struggle to grow food at farms on limited land which has been exhausted of natural nutrients.
Food scientists in Pyongyang have even attempted to make 'functional vegetables' so that people can consume less and yet stay healthy. But, even this kind of biotech driven farming needs fertiliser.
Also Read:North Korea's Kim Jong Un calls for developing a 'self-sufficient economy'
For many years, North Korea relied on imports of chemical fertiliser, but those have long dried up.
During the meeting, Kim also highlighted a part of the chemical industry which has the potential for harnessing raw materials to make fuel.Fertiliser has been a particular focus of North Korea's media this year. Kim's first public appearance this year was at a fertiliser factory.
The two-day politburo meeting comes at a time of economic uncertainty amid the global COVID-19 pandemic that is putting additional pressure on the North’s economy.
North Korea had already been suffering economically due to the international sanctions against the country’s nuclear programmes. And the country is currently in a spat with its neighbour, South Korea, over the matter of defectors.
Also Read:North Korea threatens to halt military agreement with the South over anti-Kim leaflets
Nearly 500,000 leaflets have been dumped along the border. The leaflets were carried across the border through balloons over Kim'snuclear ambitions and dismal human rights
South Korean activists have been trying to send censored materials across the borderto democratise North Korea and put an end to Kim's regime. North Korea considers the leaflets an attack on its government and has long demanded that South Korea ban activists from sending them.
In her statement released through state media, Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong called those defectors "human scum" and "mongrel dogs" who betrayed their homeland and said that it was "time to bring their owners to account," referring to the government in Seoul.
North Korea is threatening to pull out of the inter-Korean military agreement which was signed in 2018 as a major step towards ensuring peace along the Korean demilitarised zone.
It is planning to snap all channels of communication with South Korea and close an inter-Korean liaison office if the South does not stop defectors from sending leaflets and other material into the North.
(With inputs from agencies)