An independent kingdom for much of its long history, Korea was occupied by Japan beginning in 1905 following the Russo-Japanese War. Five years later, Japan formally annexed the entire peninsula. Following World War II, Korea was split with the northern half coming under Soviet-sponsored Communist control. After failing in the Korean War (1950-53) to conquer the US-backed Republic of Korea (ROK) in the southern portion by force, North Korea (DPRK), under its founder President KIM Il Sung, adopted a policy of ostensible diplomatic and economic "self-reliance" as a check against outside influence. The DPRK demonized the US as the ultimate threat to its social system through state-funded propaganda, and molded political, economic, and military policies around the core ideological objective of eventual unification of Korea under Pyongyang's control. KIM Il Sung's son, the current ruler KIM Jong Il, was officially designated as his father's successor in 1980, assuming a growing political and managerial role until the elder KIM's death in 1994. In 2010, KIM Jong Il began the process of preparing the way for his youngest son, KIM Jong Un, to succeed him in power. After decades of economic mismanagement and resource misallocation, the DPRK since the mid-1990s has relied heavily on international aid to feed its population. North Korea's history of regional military provocations, proliferation of military-related items, long-range missile development, WMD programs including tests of nuclear devices in 2006 and 2009, and massive conventional armed forces are of major concern to the international community. The regime has marked 2012, the centenary of KIM Il Sung's birth, a banner year; to that end, the country has been focused on development of the economy.

Eastern Asia, northern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Korea Bay and the Sea of Japan, between China and South Korea

slightly smaller than Mississippi

temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer

mostly hills and mountains separated by deep, narrow valleys; coastal plains wide in west, discontinuous in east

coal, lead, tungsten, zinc, graphite, magnesite, iron ore, copper, gold, pyrites, salt, fluorspar, hydropower

late spring droughts often followed by severe flooding; occasional typhoons during the early fall

water pollution; inadequate supplies of potable water; waterborne disease; deforestation; soil erosion and degradation

strategic location bordering China, South Korea, and Russia; mountainous interior is isolated and sparsely populated

24,457,492 (July 2011 est.)

14.51 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

9.08 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

-0.04 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

2.02 children born/woman (2011 est.)

urban: 100% of population

rural: 100% of population

total: 100% of population (2008)

urban: 58% of population

rural: 60% of population

total: 59% of population

urban: 42% of population

rural: 40% of population

total: 41% of population (2000)

racially homogeneous; there is a small Chinese community and a few ethnic Japanese

traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way)

Communist state one-man dictatorship

9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 2 municipalities (si, singular and plural)

15 August 1945 (from Japan)

Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948)

adopted 1948; revised several times most recently in 2009

civil law system based on the Prussian model; system influenced by Japanese traditions and Communist legal theory

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

17 years of age; universal

unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly)

major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Jong Il]; minor parties - Chondoist Chongu Party [RYU Mi Yong] (under KWP control), Social Democratic Party [KIM Yong Dae] (under KWP control)

ARF, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

none; North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York

none; note - Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang represents the US as consular protecting power

three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star; the broad red band symbolizes revolutionary traditions; the narrow white bands stands for purity, strength, and dignity; the blue bands signify sovereignty, peace, and friendship; the red star represents socialism

North Korea, one of the world's most centrally directed and least open economies, faces chronic economic problems. Industrial capital stock is nearly beyond repair as a result of years of underinvestment, shortages of spare parts, and poor maintenance. Large-scale military spending draws off resources needed for investment and civilian consumption. Industrial and power output have stagnated for years at a fraction of pre-1990 levels. Frequent weather-related crop failures aggravated chronic food shortages caused by on-going systemic problems, including a lack of arable land, collective farming practices, poor soil quality, insufficient fertilization, and persistent shortages of tractors and fuel. Large-scale international food aid deliveries have allowed the people of North Korea to escape widespread starvation since famine threatened in 1995, but the population continues to suffer from prolonged malnutrition and poor living conditions. Since 2002, the government has allowed private "farmers' markets" to begin selling a wider range of goods. It also permitted some private farming - on an experimental basis - in an effort to boost agricultural output. In October 2005, the government tried to reverse some of these policies by forbidding private sales of grains and reinstituting a centralized food rationing system. By December 2005, the government terminated most international humanitarian assistance operations in North Korea (calling instead for developmental assistance only) and restricted the activities of remaining international and non-governmental aid organizations. In mid-2008, North Korea began receiving food aid under a US program to deliver 500,000 metric tons of food via the World Food Program and US nongovernmental organizations; but Pyongyang stopped accepting the aid in March 2009. In December 2009, North Korea carried out a redenomination of its currency, capping the amount of North Korean won that could be exchanged for the new notes, and limiting the exchange to a one-week window. A concurrent crackdown on markets and foreign currency use yielded severe shortages and inflation, forcing Pyongyang to ease the restrictions by February 2010. In response to the sinking of the South Korean destroyer Cheonan and the shelling of Yeonpyong Island, South Korea's government cut off most aid, trade, and bilateral cooperation activities, with the exception of operations at the Kaesong Industrial Complex. The year 2012 will be the 100th anniversary of Kim Il-sung's birthday. The North Korean government often highlights its 2012 goal of becoming a "strong and prosperous" nation. Attracting foreign investment, especially from neighboring China, will be a key factor for improving the overall standard of living. Nevertheless, firm political control remains the government's overriding concern, which likely will inhibit changes to North Korea's current economic system.

$40 billion (2009 est.)

$40 billion (2008 est.)

North Korea does not publish reliable National Income Accounts data; the data shown here are derived from purchasing power parity (PPP) GDP estimates for North Korea that were made by Angus MADDISON in a study conducted for the OECD; his figure for 1999 was extrapolated to 2009 using estimated real growth rates for North Korea's GDP and an inflation factor based on the US GDP deflator; the results were rounded to the nearest $10 billion.

$28 billion (2009 est.)

rice, corn, potatoes, soybeans, pulses; cattle, pigs, pork, eggs

military products; machine building, electric power, chemicals; mining (coal, iron ore, limestone, magnesite, graphite, copper, zinc, lead, and precious metals), metallurgy; textiles, food processing; tourism

22.5 billion kWh (2008 est.)

18.8 billion kWh (2008 est.)

118 bbl/day (2009 est.)

16,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

0 bbl/day (2007 est.)

13,890 bbl/day (2007 est.)

0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

0 cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

$1.997 billion (2009)

$2.062 billion (2008)

minerals, metallurgical products, manufactures (including armaments), textiles, agricultural and fishery products

South Korea 47%, China 40%, Hong Kong 2% (2009 est.)

$3.096 billion (2009)

$3.574 billion (2008)

petroleum, coking coal, machinery and equipment, textiles, grain

China 61%, South Korea 24%, Singapore 2%, India 2% (2009 est.)

$12.5 billion (2001 est.)

North Korean won (KPW) per US dollar (market rate)

1,800 (December 2010)

3,630 (December 2008)

no independent media; radios and televisions are pre-tuned to government stations; 4 government-owned television stations; the Korean Workers' Party owns and operates the Korean Central Broadcasting Station, and the state-run Voice of Korea operates an external broadcast service; the government prohibits listening to and jams foreign broadcasts (2008)

2,250 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2010)

Ch'ongjin, Haeju, Hungnam (Hamhung), Namp'o, Senbong, Songnim, Sonbong (formerly Unggi), Wonsan

North Korean People's Army: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force; civil security forces (2005)

17 years of age (2004)

risking arrest, imprisonment, and deportation, tens of thousands of North Koreans cross into China to escape famine, economic privation, and political oppression; North Korea and China dispute the sovereignty of certain islands in Yalu and Tumen rivers; Military Demarcation Line within the 4-km wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953; periodic incidents in the Yellow Sea with South Korea which claims the Northern Limiting Line as a maritime boundary; North Korea supports South Korea in rejecting Japan's claim to Liancourt Rocks (Tok-do/Take-shima)

for years, from the 1970s into the 2000s, citizens of the Democratic People's Republic of (North) Korea (DPRK), many of them diplomatic employees of the government, were apprehended abroad while trafficking in narcotics, including two in Turkey in December 2004; police investigations in Taiwan and Japan in recent years have linked North Korea to large illicit shipments of heroin and methamphetamine, including an attempt by the North Korean merchant ship Pong Su to deliver 150 kg of heroin to Australia in April 2003