North Korea plans to increase its government spending on pandemic measures by one-third this year to carry out leader Kim Jong Un’s calls for a more advanced virus response.
It appeared Kim Jong Un did not attend the parliamentary session and state media didn’t mention any comments by senior officials toward Washington or Seoul amid a deepening diplomatic freeze.
Cheong Seong-Chang, an analyst at South Korea’s private Sejong Institute, said North Korea’s description of its budget clearly reflected its plans to gradually expand trade and other exchanges with China, its main ally and economic lifeline, while reshaping its virus response. He said the North could possibly adopt China’s approach of sealing certain regions to stem transmissions, instead of locking down its entire country.
The North’s resumption of railroad freight traffic with China last month came between a flurry of missile tests clearly aimed at pressuring the Biden administration over stalled nuclear diplomacy, which some experts say possibly shows the urgent need for outside relief.The border reopening possibly shows the North is exploring more sustainable ways to deal with the coronavirus threat that may go on for years. It could also provide glimpse into the North’s plans for vaccines against COVID-19.
North Korea’s resumed trade with China will almost certainly be driven by imports as much of the country’s major export activities are banned under international sanctions tightened since 2016, when Kim began accelerating weapons development. The country needs fertilizers to boost food production, construction materials to support Kim’s ambitious development projects and factory goods to spur industrial production decimated by the two years of halted trade.
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