Cable from Hao Deqing, 'Talks during Premier Kim's Reception of Ambassador Hao'

Cable Received by the Central Committee

No. (52) 211

Urgent 

Talks during Premier Kim's Reception of Ambassador Hao

To the Foreign Ministry:

Copy to the Party Central Committee: [Top Secret]

I received the information by cable on 11 March. Premier Kim Il Sung met me on 12 March and we spoke for about half an hour. Foreign Minister Pak Seong-cheol was also present.

When I gave my explanation and suggestions according to the contents of the cable, the Premier repeatedly expressed how happy he was to have Comrade Peng Zhen lead the National People's Congress delegation for a visit and welcomed them, “We can set the date in May, it will be warmer by then." As for the invitation extended by our party to Comrade Pak Geum-cheol or other comrades to lead a delegation to China, the Premier repeatedly gave his confirmation that Comrade Pak Geum-cheol could visit China, “In the past, he’s always at home looking after the house and has never been to China. We had also discussed this among the party central committee. Comrade Pak Geum-cheol can read Chinese books and newspapers. He had even read the Four Books." The premier did not immediately make it clear in what capacity and when he would visit China, but judging from his expression when he was speaking, he needs time to consider and discuss this before giving a response.

The Premier then changed the topic to the Third Plenum of the Korean Workers’ Party. The Premier said: “The participants of the meeting included cadres-in-charge above the county and district [?] levels and from the government organs, factories and schools, as well as cadres from organizations at various levels and cadres of propaganda teams, with more than 3,000 people in total. Taking into account the results and some weaknesses of the party’s work in South Hwanghae Province [note: This province was established as a model after the Premier’s on-site guidance in January], the plenum discussed the party’s organization and propaganda work, mainly to resolve the issues of not mixing the party work with that of the administration and not taking on what ought to be done by others. After the plenum ended, they took two days to discuss the international situation, mainly on the issues of anti-imperialism and anti-revisionism. The Premier said: “The situation in our party is very good, the overwhelming majority have a common understanding and only a small minority, mainly some intellectuals, are a bit confused in their understanding. For instance, they asked if we would be able to establish socialism without the help of the Soviets and other questions." The Premier then said: “In the past, the idea of Sadaejuui [serving the great] gained popularity in Korea, and there was a blind belief in Japan and China of the olden days. They believed that great powers could do anything and small countries could do nothing. In 1954, we raised the idea of anti-dogmatism, which was in in substance the opposition of copying the Soviet Union’s methods wholesale, and that is anti-Sadaejuui, and not the ‘dogmatism’ that they speak about. The ‘dogmatism’ that they oppose is precisely Marxism-Leninism.

The Premier said: “What is revisionism, revisionism is capitulationism. I told our colleagues in the party central committee, all of us have engaged in revolution for more than thirty years and for what? We cannot go down the road of capitulationism and we must oppose imperialism. Half of our territory and two-thirds of our people have yet to be liberated.” “Today our papers have published Lenin’s article again [note: Xinhua news agency has already reported this]. My method is to publish a few of Lenin’s articles on opposing old revisionism and to publish some articles on a weekly basis. As for opposing modern revisionism, we mainly engage in word-of-mouth propaganda and do not publish anything in the papers. Modern revisionism and old revisionism are derived from the same origins.”

The Premier also talked about the Soviet Communist Party plenum and the trade negotiations between [North] Korea and the Soviet Union. “I told our comrades in the party central committee that Khrushchev did not resolve the agricultural issue well and still pushed the blame to Stalin. But Stalin had been dead for close to a decade. How shameless of him [to do so]!” The trade negotiations between [North] Korea and the Soviet Union did not resolve anything after two months in Moscow. The recent negotiations in Pyongyang resolved the issue more smoothly.”

When the Premier talked about the proposal to send General Han Ik-su [Vice Minister of Defense] as the new Ambassador to China [note: the foreign ministry will initiate official diplomatic procedures] and the health of the former Ambassador, I said “Comrade Liu Shaoqi had talked to Ambassador Ri once, I guess the Premier must have known about this a long time ago." The Premier said: “Ambassador Ri had written a report and I had read it. I think it is very good and I am very happy with it.”

Hao Deqing

13 March 1962