Leader Kim Jong Un Warns North Koreans of ‘Hard Times Ahead’

 

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has warned his country about a difficult economic future.

Kim made the comments in his New Year's message published Wednesday at the end of a four-day meeting of the ruling Workers' Party.

The North Korean leader also seemed to reject the possibility of progress in talks with the United States on the country's nuclear weapons program.

Kim expressed a new, tougher approach to the United States.

"We have to live under the sanctions¹ by the hostile forces in the future," Kim said.

Kim also threatened to restart intercontinental ballistic missile or nuclear tests. He warned the world would soon see a new kind of "weapon." But his comments about his own country's future also show a small change in his situation.

The failure of the February 2019 meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, with U.S. President Donald Trump² may have hurt his influence at home.

"I think the failure of Hanoi created some...costs for him and those advocating for diplomacy³ with the U.S.," said Andray Abrahamian. He is with George Mason University Korea. "They looked weak by asking for sanctions relief, now they're signaling that they don't need it."

Hard-liners oppose talks

At the failed negotiations⁴ in Hanoi, Kim offered to dismantle⁵ some of the Yongbyon nuclear center. In exchange, North Korean negotiators wanted a lessening⁶ of sanctions that have severely⁷ hurt the country's economy. Trump rejected the offer. This might have created embarrassment⁸ for Kim.

North Korea has been under United Nations sanctions for years and U.S. sanctions for even longer. The sanctions are part of an international effort to cause North Korea to end its nuclear weapons and long range missile programs. Trump has refused to reduce the sanctions until North Korea agrees to stop all of its nuclear weapons activities.

The failure in Hanoi created difficulties for North Korea's small, but important, growing merchant class. It also strengthened the argument of the country's traditional hard-liners. They are against negotiations that may cause the country to give up its nuclear weapons.

Kim's statement may have been a call for loyalty⁹.

Kim Jong Un's message on sanctions was about accepting them, explained Jenny Town. She is a Korea specialist at the Stimson Center, a research group in Washington D.C.

‘Hard times ahead'

One important possible change could be a strengthening of North Korea's byungjin policy. That policy calls for the country to work toward nuclear and economic growth at the same time.

The byungjin idea is very clear to North Koreans. It means doing with less to help the national economy, said Rachel Minyoung Lee. She is a North Korea expert with NK News, a website that reports on North Korea.

It means "hard times ahead," she added.

Kim also called for a campaign against the small, private markets that have been growing during the last 20 years. This might make life even harder for North Koreans.

Duyeon Kim is a senior adviser¹⁰ for Northeast Asia and nuclear policy at the International Crisis¹¹ Group. She says North Korea will now try to become a nuclear and economic power.

Kim's speech did not completely reject nuclear negotiations. However, it did suggest a more hard-line policy in 2020.

Words in This Story

approach– n. a way of dealing¹² with a problem

sanctions– n. an action taken to force a country to obey international laws by stopping or limiting trade

ballistic missile– n. a weapon that is shot through the sky over a great distance then falls to the ground and explodes

advocacy– n. supporting a cause or an idea

relief– n. removing or reducing something that is painful

dismantle –v. to take apart

hard-line –adj. tough and strong

embarrassment– n. the state of feeling foolish in front of others

merchant– n. those who buy or sell products

1 sanctions   

批准( sanction的名词复数 )； 认可； 制裁； 约束力

参考例句：

• There was general acquiescence in the UN sanctions. 普遍默认了联合国的制裁。
• Trade sanctions were imposed against any country that refused to sign the agreement. 凡拒签该协议的国家均受到贸易制裁。

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

4 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

5 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

6 lessening   

减轻，减少，变小

参考例句：

• So however much he earned, she spent it, her demands growing and lessening with his income. 祥子挣多少，她花多少，她的要求随着他的钱涨落。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
• The talks have resulted in a lessening of suspicion. 谈话消减了彼此的怀疑。

7 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

8 embarrassment   

n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫

参考例句：

• She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
• Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。

9 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

10 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

11 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

12 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。