NewsTracker Answers for week of Apr 01, 2013

Q: After U.S. stealth bomber flights over the Korean peninsula, North Korea said it put its missile units on stand-by to attack U.S. military bases in the Pacific, including Hawaii and Guam. Where is North Korea on this map?

Circle the area on this map

Q: North Korea often makes brash threats, but last month it declared its armistice with South Korea is "invalid" and cut telephone hotlines with the south. The Korean Peninsula was partitioned in 1945 after being ruled 35 years by . .

A. Russia

B. China

C. Japan

D. France

C. Annexed by the Empire of Japan in 1910, Korea was divided into two occupied zones at the end of World War II. The Soviet Union occupied the north and the United States occupied the south. Separate states were created in 1948, with both claiming sovereignty over the entire Korean peninsula. They went to war in 1950.

Q: After a three-year war, the territories of North and South Korea remained virtually unchanged. Their capitals are only 120 miles apart. What is the capital of North Korea?

A. Seoul

B. Pyongyang

C. Panmunjom

D. Hanoi

B. Pyongyang is the capital and largest city of North Korea. Seoul is the capital of South Korea, and Panmunjom is is an abandoned village on border between north and south where the armistice was signed in 1953 to stop the fighting in the Korean War. The two countries remain officially at war because a formal peace treaty was never signed.

Q: What is the name of the family that has ruled North Korea since 1948?

A. Kim

B. Ho

C. Joseon

D. Mao

A. Kim Il-sung ruled North Korea from its establishment until his death in 1994. He was succeeded by his son Kim Jong-il who ruled until his death in 2011 when he was succeeded by his son Kim Jong-un. Kim Il-sung established a cult of personality, which portrayed him as a god-like hero. His successors continued to use mass media propaganda to encourage hero worship by the masses.

Q: Some observers believe Kim Jong-un is using the threats against the south and the United States to solidify his power in North Korea. When he succeeded his father he became . . .

A. World's youngest head of state

B. Supreme leader of North Korea

C. Commander of the army

D. All of the above

D. Kim Jong-un became his father's heir apparent after an older brother reportedly fell out of favor when he was caught trying to enter Japan with a fake passport to visit Tokyo Disneyland.