That framework has made it possible for Secretary of State Albright to become the highest-ranking American ever to visit North Korea. In mid-October, we traveled to Pyongyang to cover massive celebrations hailing the 55 years of rule by the Korean Workers' Party. But as celebrations died down, North Korean still face serious problems. After a promising harvest in 199, international aid workers say that a combination of drought and typhoons have caused major damage to the crops here, raising the specter of more food shortages just as the country was emerging from several years of near-famine conditions. More broadly, the regime of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is facing a question of how to deal with repairing the damage caused by years of economic decline due not only to natural disasters, but the inefficiency of Pyongyang's rigid socialist system.
Most outside analysts agree that economic reform is essential for long-term recovery.
So far, the regime has taken major initiatives to improve its external relations, in the hope of gaining economic aid and international legitimacy. One by-product has been a gradual influx of outside influences, as growing numbers of foreign aid workers, diplomats, and business people travel to Pyongyang. The government, however, appears determined to prevent any change its unique political system, which remains based on devotion to Kim Jong Il and his father, the late President Kim Il Sung. Whether Kim Jong Il can successfully manage a gradual process of internal change and external engagement will likely determine whether North Korea can recover and rebuild, or sink further into decline. All Rights Reserved.