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June 9, 1958

Journal of Soviet Ambassador in the DPRK A. M. Puzanov for 9 June 1958

This document was made possible with support from ROK Ministry of Unification

USSR EMBASSY IN THE DPRK

Nº 113

12 June 1958

 

[faded stamp:

01664-s

24 June 1958]

 

[handwriting: "Copy to Cdes.

Torbenkov

Samsonov"]

 

JOURNAL

of Soviet Ambassador in the DPRK A. M. Puzanov during the

period 31 May through 11 June 1958

 

[handwriting off the

left margin with some

names and initials]

 

Pyongyang

 

[…]

 

9 June 1958

 

I was at a session of the Supreme People's Assembly. The agenda of the session was:

 

1. Concerning the five-year plan for the development of the DPRK economy.

 

2. Approval of the Decrees of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly.

 

Gosplan Chairman Ri Jeong-ok [Ri Jong Ok] gave a report on the first issue. In the report at the session, as in the report at the Party conference on this issue, Ri Jeong-ok said very little about aid of the Soviet Union and the countries of people's democracy in the restoration and development of the DPRK economy. Speaking of the tasks by industrial sector, he also passed over in silence the aid of the Soviet Union given by transferring production processes for individual types of products. Nothing was also said about the coordination of long-range planning and the reciprocal deliveries of goods, that is, about the talks about these issues between the DPRK delegation and the delegation of the Soviet Union which took place in Moscow in May.

 

After the report Pak Jeong-ae [Pak Jong Ae] spoke first. She sent cordial greetings to the Chinese people's volunteers and the great Chinese people for the aid given in the war against the American occupiers. She spoke of the history of the friendship and that now, when both the Chinese and Korean peoples are traveling along the road of the development of socialism, the friendship has entered a new stage. Thanks to this friendship and also the aid of the other socialist countries headed by the Soviet Union the DPRK economy, which was ruined during the war, has recovered. She also spoke about the wonders of bravery displayed by the Chinese people's volunteers during the war, their enormous aid in restoring the economy after the war, and about the active support of the PRC government to the peace proposals of the DPRK government to reunify the country. Pak Jeong-ae said, at the present time the friendship of the Korean and Chinese peoples is stronger than ever before. She suggested sending a letter of gratitude to the Chinese people's volunteers and the great Chinese people in the name of the session of the Supreme People's Assembly.

 

The session unanimously adopted this suggestion. A commission was created to work out the text.

 

Deputies Kim Il; Ku Cha-seon, a worker of a zinc mine; Ri Il-geon [sic], Chief of the KWP CC Agitprop Department; Sin Gu-heon [sic], a worker of a machine-building plant; Ri Cheon-ho, Minister of the Chemical Industry; and Jeon-Ha-seon [sic], from an agricultural cooperative of the area of the city of Kaesong, spoke at the evening session.

 

Kim Il's speech was substantive and interesting. He called for the people to be educated in a spirit of strengthening the unity and friendship with the true friends of the Korean people, the great Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China, and the countries of people's democracy.

 

In his speech about the aid of the Soviet Union in the development of the DPRK chemical industry Minister of the Chemical Industry Ri Cheon-ho said only that the Madong Cement Plant is being built with the aid of the Soviet Union.

 

The session was held in an arts theater. Members of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, the DPRK government, and members of the CC Presidium were all together on the stage. However, what caught the eye was that the Chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly and his two deputies sit behind a small ordinary office desk which was not even located in the middle (not in the center) of the stage, but placed to the side of the rostrum. The impression is created that they are not the leaders of the session but only people next in line to speak.

 

[…]

Puzanov reports on his attendance at a session of the Supreme People's Assembly.


Document Information

Source

AVPRF fond 0102, opis 14, delo 6, p. Translated for NKIDP by Gary Goldberg.

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Original Uploaded Date

2013-01-15

Type

Diary Entry

Language

Record ID

116147

Donors

ROK Ministry of Unification and Leon Levy Foundation