SEOUL, June 20 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has dramatically cut its goal of building 100,000 houses by next year, a government source said Monday, amid the North being economically squeezed by the international community for its nuclear and missile programs for years.

   After the North started the project in Pyongyang in 2009, as part of its plans to achieve a strong and prosperous country by 2012, the North cut the number of planned houses by 75 percent to 25,000. The year 2012 marks the centennial of the birth of Kim Il-sung, the country's late founder.

   The North, however, is continuing to repair a towering bronze statue of Kim and renovate around the Kumsusan Memorial Palace, where his embalmed body lies, the source said on condition of anonymity, citing policy.

   Kim is the father of current leader, Kim Jong-il. The Kims are the subject of a massive personality cult that pervades almost every aspect of North Korean society.

   Still, the North has embarked on a project to demolish buildings and facilities in central Pyongyang to make room for high-rise apartments, a theater and a park for senior officials.

   The North has begun interior work on one of its landmarks, the 105-story Ryukyong Hotel, which stood unfinished in downtown Pyongyang for nearly 20 years due to a lack of capital.

   In 2008, the North resumed construction of the skyscraper, but it appears unlikely for the project to be completed next year. It is believed, however, that the North will finish some floors for use.

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