Today growing confusion is sweeping the world owing to the aggression, trade disputes and interference engineered by imperialists. Amid such global turmoil, the DPRK, a country which is proudly defending its sovereignty and dignity, comes into the spotlight of the international community.

The DPRK has been built and developed on the strength of independence.

Since its inception, the country has held fast to independent principles and worked out all its lines and policies in accordance with its specific situation and its people’s demands. Many countries took the road of US-style democracy or Soviet-style socialism after the end of the Second World War, but the DPRK adopted its own style of democracy, or progressive democracy.

The Fatherland Liberation War (1950-1953) was a formidable challenge to the nascent DPRK founded on September 9, 1948. But the two-year-old country repelled the armed invasion of the imperialist allied forces. It is attributable to the fact that the country relied on the Juche-oriented strategy and tactics.

The war destroyed everything in the country but the Korean people adhered to the principle of economic self-sufficiency in conformity with the original line of economic construction on giving priority to the development of heavy industry while developing light industry and agriculture simultaneously. The country also flatly rejected the pressure from the great-power chauvinists who forced it to enter the CMEA (Council for Mutual Economic Assistance) on the pretext of an “integrated economy” among the socialist countries, and held even faster to the line of building an independent national economy.

Such a staunch independent stand made it possible for the country to remain unperturbed when socialism collapsed in the East European countries one after another at the end of the last century.

As a matter of fact, the imperialists have brought unprecedented pressure, blackmail, sanctions and blockade to bear upon the DPRK for the past several decades in a bid to stifle its socialism. However, it has defended its sovereignty and dignity, consolidated and developed its people-centred socialist system, and now is striving for the overall development of socialism.

It has thoroughly embodied the ideals of independence, peace and friendship in its external relations and consistently maintained an independent stand in its external activities, contributing to defending peace in Asia and the rest of the world including the Korean peninsula and developing friendly and cooperative relations with other countries. A typical example is the friendly DPRK-Russia relations which have recently been developed into the comprehensive strategic partnership.

It is no exaggeration to say that the reality in the DPRK winning victory after victory by dint of independence gives many countries and nations a clear answer to shaping their destiny in the present complicated world.

Han Su Yong