DPRK gets 'fully ready' at any new situation in Kaesong

PYONGYANG - The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is getting "fully ready" to cope with any new development in the Kaesong Industrial Zone on its border with the Republic of Korea, the official KCNA news agency said Sunday.

During a trip to the industrial complex, which houses about 120 companies of ROK with some 54,000 DPRK workers, Secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party Kim Yang-gon urged relevant departments to get fully ready to cope with whatever new situations arising in the area.

"It has become impossible to operate the zone as usual due to the ROK's warmongers' reckless acts," Kim told a meeting held on the spot.

He called for "strained and mobilized posture on high alert" in case of provocation by the United States and the ROK.

The DPRK had barred people and cargo from entering the industrial park since Wednesday, leaving many South Korean companies short of food and raw materials.

The ROK's Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin told lawmakers on Thursday that he personally agreed with calls to pull out the civilians from Kaesong, as they would be in jeopardy if the DPRK carries out military provocations. He also said that if the ROK's nationals were held hostage, Seoul had a military contingency plan to get them out.