http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/NewsD ... enDocument
N. Korea Prepares for War with U.S.
North Korea has ordered its people to prepare 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 on 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 that it was Washington's next target of invasion following the Iraq War.
The manual -- the first such North Korea document made public in the outside world -- was signed by Kim Jong Il at his capacity of 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 stalling talks on its nuclear weapons programs, as well as its campaign to whip up a sense of crisis among its 22 million populace reportedly growing discontented with economic hardships.
"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."(AP)
Beirut, Updated 07 Jan 05, 09:26