North Korea started the New Year with a message that is seen by some as “not like the usual North Korea” that the world was accustomed to.
North Korea Friday issued a statement that expressed hope for terminating its confrontation with the United States and improving ties with South Korea, and denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula as well as improving the livelihood of its people, Yonhap reported citing North Korea’s official media.
The nation “remains consistent in its efforts to establish a lasting peace system on the Korean Peninsula and make it nuclear-free through dialogue and negotiations,” an editorial carried by the official Korean Central News Agency said.
"The fundamental task for ensuring peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the rest of Asia is to put an end to the hostile relationship between North Korea and the U.S.," the editorial said.
Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies, said the editorial indicates that the North has decided to embrace a process in which enmity with the U.S. is resolved at the same time as the six-nation nuclear negotiations take place.
The New Year editorial, jointly issued by the North's ruling party, army and youth military, is scrutinized by observers as a blueprint for the isolated state's policy goals for the coming year.