North-Korea

North Korea, officially known as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, is an independent East Asian state located in the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. To the south, it is bordered by a demilitarized zone that separates it from South Korea, and to the north, it is separated from China by the Yalu and Tumen rivers. In the northeast, a section of the Tumen river serves as a border with Russia.

The country is often referred to as a Stalinist state, but this is incorrect. North Korea follows the Juche ideology, which was developed by the country's first leader, Kim Il-sung. Kim Il-sung combined Korean and Neo-Confucian traditions with Marxism, Marxism-Leninism, Stalinism, and nationalism.

However, the foundations of North Korea's ideology trace back to historical times. Not only does the country's name refer to Choson, the last flourishing pan-Korean state, but the dynastic, non-primogeniture-based inheritance of power and the mysticism surrounding the ruling dynasty are also Choson legacies. North Korea's isolation from the outside world is not a novelty, as its predecessor state exhibited this characteristic until the late 19th century.

After the death of Kim Il-sung in 1994, his son, Kim Jong-il, succeeded him in a dynastic manner. Following Kim Jong-il's death in 2011, Kim Jong-un, one of Kim Jong-il's younger sons, took over the country's leadership. According to the Juche ideology, the country can only rely on itself, but it maintains close relations with other socialist states, such as Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and China. Due to the collapse of the Soviet Union and famines in the 1990s, Kim Jong-il introduced economic reforms in 1995, focusing on the military and supporting it.

The capital, largest city, and the economic, cultural, and political center of North Korea is Pyongyang.

The two Korean states signed a ceasefire in 1953. They have signed agreements and treaties regarding their future potential reunification and their relationship, but they have not signed an official bilateral peace treaty since then.

In 2018, the leaders of the two Koreas agreed to sign a peace treaty ending the war within the year, but this did not happen. On May 5 of that year, as a sign of rapprochement, they adjusted the time zone to match the one used in the south, moving it forward by half an hour.