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Two domestic law enforcement agencies, the Ministry for Protection of State Security and Ministry for Protection of People's Security. They monitor society for possible dissent, arrest those who speak against the norm and assume foreign media, conducting censorship, and overseeing concentration camps.

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NORTH KOREA spends more than 20 per cent of its annual GDP on the military despite millions of citizens suffering blackouts and a lack of adequate food.

Amnesty International East Asia researcher Arnold Fang said while the size and capability of the military are virtually impossible to verify, the huge commitment to nuclear capability means citizens suffer in other areas of life.

"We know they spend possibly as much as 22 per cent of GDP on military spending. As you can imagine, with that high a proportion, a lot of other public expenses may be compromised," he told news.com.au.

"People are drafted into the army for a very long time. It could easily be seven years or I've heard some cases where people spend ten years in the army. This applies to most men who are physically able to do so."

Military comparison website Global Fire Power ranks North Korea just one point below Australia when it comes to the capabilities of 126 nations at number 22 and 23 in the world. Both states have a similar size population with around 10 million citizens fit for service, it estimates.

However despite the disproportionate commitment from North Korea, Australia spends around $27 billion on defence compared to around $10 billion for the Asian nation. Australia also has a military alliance with the United States - the world's foremost military power with a population of around 323 million.

On Wednesday, US President Trump told UN representatives North Korea was a global problem they had to work together to solve as the country rolled out its THAAD missile defence system in South Korea. Trump is also leaning on North Korea's closest ally, China, to try and exert pressure on the country economically.

An unidentified North Korean foreign minister said the US strategy was "little short of lighting the fuse of total war," the state news agency reported. However the military escalation is likely at odds with the situation on the ground for many North Koreans who live under a total information blackout with lack of access to independent media.

Mr Fang said ordinary citizens only have access to an internal list of 28 websites controlled by the government unless they live near the border with China and can access Chinese networks from there. They also live under threat of harsh punishment or being sent to enforced labour camps for minor incursions. Meanwhile more than 40 per cent of the population are considered malnourished following flooding and regular blackouts, according to the UN.

But despite the strict control, Mr Fang said a market based system is beginning to emerge as the

government pursues both nuclear weapons and economic development.

"Despite socialist economy of the country actually a lot of market activity is happening under the surface - and the state may not admit to it publicly - but a lot of these grey markets are in place," he said.

"In terms of access to information in the outside world, it's close to zero at least on official terms because the media is not free and if you're watching media from outside, especially (from) South Korea, you can be quite heavily punished.

"[But] the cities at the border we're talking about a different story because you have all this different technology and mobile phones coming in from China."

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North Korea spends whopping 22 per cent of GDP on military

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NORTH KOREA spends more than 20 per cent of its annual GDP on the military despite millions of citizens suffering blackouts and a lack of adequate food. Amnesty International East Asia researcher Arnold Fang said while the size and capability of the military are virtually impossible to verify, the huge commitment to nuclear capability means citizens suffer in other areas of life.

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North Korea's Constant Threats and Weapons

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North Korea's Constant Threats and Weapons

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North Korea has threaten to turn South Korea into a sea of fire, nuclear attacks against the US, The North Korean ballistic missiles, attacks against japan and South Korea. North Korea has many nuclear weapons, missiles, and rockets in development.

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NORTH KOREA spends more than 20 per cent of its annual GDP on the military despite millions of citizens suffering blackouts and a lack of adequate food.

Amnesty International East Asia researcher Arnold Fang said while the size and capability of the military are virtually impossible to verify, the huge commitment to nuclear capability means citizens suffer in other areas of life.

"We know they spend possibly as much as 22 per cent of GDP on military spending. As you can imagine, with that high a proportion, a lot of other public expenses may be compromised," he told news.com.au.

"People are drafted into the army for a very long time. It could easily be seven years or I've heard some cases where people spend ten years in the army. This applies to most men who are physically able to do so."

Military comparison website Global Fire Power ranks North Korea just one point below Australia when it comes to the capabilities of 126 nations at number 22 and 23 in the world. Both states have a similar size population with around 10 million citizens fit for service, it estimates.

However despite the disproportionate commitment from North Korea, Australia spends around $27 billion on defence compared to around $10 billion for the Asian nation. Australia also has a military alliance with the United States - the world's foremost military power with a population of around 323 million.

On Wednesday, US President Trump told UN representatives North Korea was a global problem they had to work together to solve as the country rolled out its THAAD missile defence system in South Korea. Trump is also leaning on North Korea's closest ally, China, to try and exert pressure on the country economically.

An unidentified North Korean foreign minister said the US strategy was "little short of lighting the fuse of total war," the state news agency reported. However the military escalation is likely at odds with the situation on the ground for many North Koreans who live under a total information blackout with lack of access to independent media.

Mr Fang said ordinary citizens only have access to an internal list of 28 websites controlled by the government unless they live near the border with China and can access Chinese networks from there. They also live under threat of harsh punishment or being sent to enforced labour camps for minor incursions. Meanwhile more than 40 per cent of the population are considered malnourished following flooding and regular blackouts, according to the UN.

But despite the strict control, Mr Fang said a market based system is beginning to emerge as the

government pursues both nuclear weapons and economic development.

"Despite socialist economy of the country actually a lot of market activity is happening under the surface - and the state may not admit to it publicly - but a lot of these grey markets are in place," he said.

"In terms of access to information in the outside world, it's close to zero at least on official terms because the media is not free and if you're watching media from outside, especially (from) South Korea, you can be quite heavily punished.

"[But] the cities at the border we're talking about a different story because you have all this different technology and mobile phones coming in from China."

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North Korea spends whopping 22 per cent of GDP on military

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NORTH KOREA spends more than 20 per cent of its annual GDP on the military despite millions of citizens suffering blackouts and a lack of adequate food. Amnesty International East Asia researcher Arnold Fang said while the size and capability of the military are virtually impossible to verify, the huge commitment to nuclear capability means citizens suffer in other areas of life.

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North Korea is a communist country and a dictatorship

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Level of Education -
about 390,000 annual enrollments, and only about 40% graduation rates in post secondary school. Compared to the United States, North Korea only accounts for 2.37% of the amount of American Enrollments.

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The GDP value of North Korea represents 0.03 percent of the world economy. GDP in North Korea averaged to about 11.42 billion from the 1970’s up until 2015. Its main imports are petroleum, coking coal, machinery equipment, textiles, and grains.

GDP on military
North Korea’s defense budget consumes about 25% of central government spending.

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North Korea has more of a urban population
25.37 million people

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Population of South Korea: current, historical, and projected population, growth rate, immigration, median age, total fertility rate (TFR), population density, urbanization, urban population, country's share of world population, and global rank. Data tables, maps, charts, and live population clock.

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Should North Korea be allowed sovereignty?

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Should North Korea be allowed sovereignty?

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North Korea should not be allowed sovereignty because North Korea is an autocracy that violates human rights and international law and therefore cannot be trusted with this most destructive of weapons. There nuclear weapons is a threat to the U.S. Given it’s breach of rules of the international system, they don’t deserve the protection or gain power because they wouldn’t be able to handle it. It would go to North Koreans head and they’ll perform their duties poorly and effortlessly. Sending their country on more of a downfall than they are already on.