*** NEWS IN BRIEF

North Korea, Syria Ink Economic Deals in Four Sectors

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea and Syria have recently signed agreements to further cooperate in the sectors of trade, information, economy and science, according to North Korean and Syrian news outlets.

   The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said on July 15 that the two countries on July 14 signed agreements to promote mutual cooperation in major sectors, without elaborating on details of the agreements.

   Earlier, the (North) Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said on July 9 that a North Korean government economic delegation led by Ri Ryong-nam, minister of Foreign Trade, left Pyongyang for Syria to take part in the seventh meeting of the North Korea-Syria Joint Economic Committee held in Damascus, the capital of the Middle Eastern country.

   In another dispatch on July 17, the KCNA said Ri and his party paid a courtesy call on Syrian Prime Minister Adel Shaffar on July 14.

   During the meeting, Shaffar expressed "the expectation that the bilateral ties would further develop through the meeting of the joint committee," the KCNA added.

   According to SANA, Ri stressed that North Korea will support the measures of the Syrian government for national stability and security in a ceremony to sign the agreements.

   North Korea set up diplomatic relations with Syria in 1966. The two countries held the first meeting of the bilateral joint economic committee in April 1993.

  
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N.K.'s Science Institutes Likely to Embrace Independent Profit System

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea's science institutes appear likely to embrace an independent profit system, a Pyongyang economic quarterly indicated on July 15, in an apparent sign of persistent economic hardship in the communist country.

   The North introduced the self-supporting system for its state-run companies in 1962 and expanded it to include most of its factories and companies in 2002 when the country took limited economic reform measures.

   Pyongyang later rolled back its fledging reform movement and suffered a setback from its botched currency reform that caused massive inflation.

   The economic woes seem to be behind the North's plan to make the science institutes financially independent from the government.

   North Korean leader Kim Jong-il called for the idea to gradually introduce a semi-independent or fully independent profit system for the science institutes, according to the North's monthly magazine, Economic Research (No. 2 of 2011), the latest copy obtained by Yonhap News Agency.

   The quarterly magazine also said the science institutes should not only stand on their own feet financially but also produce progress in their research and development.

   The Unification Ministry in charge of relations with North Korea estimates there are about 300 science institutes in the North.

   Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, said the North appears to be experimenting with the system, though he predicts that the move is unlikely to succeed.

  
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Pyongyang Slams Seoul's Plan to Introduce 'Unification Tax'

  
SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea on July 16 denounced South Korea for planning to introduce a "unification tax," calling it a "war tax" and "confrontation tax" against the socialist country.

   The North's denunciation came in a commentary by the Rodong Shinmun, one of the most influential newspapers in North Korea, and was reported by the KCNA.

   The commentary said the South is trying to realize its plan to overtake the North by using the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund as it faces stiff opposition from its citizens. The commentary also said the unification tax, which is premised on a sudden change in the North, is clearly a war tax.

   South Korea started raising the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund in March 1991 to further expand inter-Korean exchanges and cooperation.

   Seoul has been working on the blueprint since last year when President Lee Myung-bak first floated the idea of using taxpayers' money to cushion the cost of unification, which analysts say would be astronomical.

   It is reported that South Korea is planning to set aside more than 12 trillion won (US$11 billion) to cover potential unification costs.

   In an interview with KBS1 TV on June 26, South Korean Unification Minister Hyun In-taek said the government is planning to secure funds for the possible reunification with the North on the basis of the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund.

  
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North Korea Slams Obama's Meeting with Dalai Lama

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea on July 18 slammed U.S. President Barack Obama's meeting with Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama as an act that has "interfered with China's internal affairs" and caused conflicts between China-American relations.

   "It is apparent that the Dalai Lama tried to raise his personal profile by negotiating with senior American politicians to win support for his separatist line," the North's main newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, said in an editorial.

   The report carried by the KCNA echoed a Chinese statement that criticized Obama's meeting on July 16 with the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, warning it could hurt relations between the two countries.

   The Tibetan leader, branded by China as a separatist, was in Washington from July 5-16 for a Buddhist ritual and meetings with U.S. political leaders, including House Speaker John Boehner.

   "By inviting the Dalai Lama to its country and inciting Tibetan independence, the U.S. is continuing an anti-China scheme, interfering with China's internal affairs," the paper said, reflecting the stance of China, the sole major ally of the impoverished North.

  
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N. Korea's FM Holds Talks with Mongolian Counterpart on Boosting Ties

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui-chun held talks with his Mongolian counterpart in Ulaanbaatar, its capital, on strengthening ties between the two countries, the North's state news agency said on July 19.

   The two sides "informed each other of the situation in their countries and exchanged views on boosting the friendly relations between the two countries and issues of common concern," the KCNA said in a dispatch, without elaborating.

   Pak arrived at Ulaanbaatar on July 16. Pak is also scheduled to visit Malaysia and Singapore, according to the KCNA.

   The visit on Ulaanbaatar came ahead of Pak's trip to Indonesia to attend a regional security forum set for July 21 through July 23.

  
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North Korea Confers Top Medal to Senior Propaganda Official

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea awarded a top medal to a senior propaganda official, the country's state news agency said on July 19, a development that could underscore the importance of propaganda in extending leader Kim Jong-il's family dynasty into a third generation.

   The order of Kim Il-sung was conferred on Kwon Hyok-bong, vice director of the Workers' Party department handling propaganda affairs, the KCNA said in a dispatch.

   "He made a signal contribution to educating" North Koreans and produced monumental masterpieces "flawless in ideological content and artistry suited to the features of a prosperous and powerful country," the KCNA said.

   The North has vowed to build a prosperous and powerful nation next year, the centennial of the birth of the country's late founder, Kim Il-sung, the father of current leader Kim.

   The move comes amid Kim's apparent preparations to hand over his power to his third and youngest son, Kim Jong-un.

   He named Jong-un vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party and a four-star general last year.

  
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North Korea Blasts Japan for Fresh Provocation over Dokdo

SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea on July 20 blasted Japan for what it said was a scheme to lay claims to the South Korean islets of Dokdo, days after a group of Japanese lawmakers announced it will visit the nearby island of Ulleung.

   In a commentary carried by the North's official Web site, Uriminzokkiri, the communist state warned against inaction, saying Dokdo was a treasure of the Korean people that should be passed down for generations.

   South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo have long been a major thorn in relations between Seoul and Tokyo, as the latter periodically renews its territorial claims, often in school textbooks.

   "We are determined to take 1,000 times our people's revenge for Japan's reactionary moves, which, far from apologizing or compensating for the immeasurable unhappiness and pain inflicted upon our people, only scheme to take away our land," the commentary said.

   The Koreas reject Japan's claims to the islets as nonsense, saying they reclaimed sovereignty over their territory at the end of Tokyo's 1910-45 colonial rule of the peninsula.

   "The entire people must unite to resolutely crush the scheme to seize Dokdo, in order that the Japanese reactionaries may never again set sight on our land. This is our generation's demand and the call of the people," the commentary said.

   The remarks came five days after four lawmakers of Japan's conservative opposition Liberal Democratic Party announced that they will visit Ulleung Island, sandwiched between South Korea's east coast and Dokdo, early next month.

   The announcement, coupled with the Japanese foreign ministry's recent instructions to avoid Korean Air flights, caused a furore in Seoul, with South Korean Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik on Tuesday expressing "deep regret" over the double move.

   Japan's foreign ministry officials were told to refrain from taking Korean Air flights for one month starting this Monday to protest the airline's special flight over Dokdo in mid-June.

   The lawmakers have already booked their flight to Seoul on Aug. 1 and plan to return home three days later, a source told Yonhap News Agency on the condition of anonymity. The group had said it will visit Ulleung Island on Aug. 2-3 during its four-day stay in the country.

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