GETTY Kim Jong-un continued war of words could spark WW3 with the North

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The Kim family have built up an empire based on ideology and propaganda, which sees the people of North Korea guided by a political philosophy that places commitment to the state above all else. And the regime has a raft of terminology to glorify the North Korean dictator and brainwash his 25 plus million citizens into justifying his strength and rule. For example, the expression ‘Juche’ has an influence on the everyday lives of North Koreans and explains why freedoms of any sort, including religion, are scarce in a nation that treats its leaders like a God of the mythical world. Founded by Kim Jong-un’s grandfather, Kim II-sung, the expression 'Juche' means ‘self reliance’ and as a political philosophy the people of the secretive state are forced to believe that to maintain independence, any influence from the outside world must be excluded.

GETTY World War 3 could erupt between North Korea and the US

The Kim family have built up an empire based on ideology and propaganda

The history of the ideology’s key role in North Korea becoming what it is today dates back to Kim Il-sung’s reign as he attempted to build his regime after the 1950-53 Korean War. Kim II-sung described the ideology during the aftermath of the Korean War in 1955, saying: “All ideological work must be subordinated to the interests of the Korean revolution.” In other words, it means the state, its leaders and its political vision come before the interests and identities of its citizens. Kim II-sung also explained: “Establishing Juche means, in a nutshell, being the master of revolution and reconstruction in one’s own country.

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“This means holding fast to an independent position, rejecting dependence on others, using one’s own brains, believing in one’s own strength, displaying the revolutionary spirit of self-reliance, and thus solving one’s own problems for oneself on one’s own responsibility under all circumstances." Fast-forward to modern day North Korea and Kim Jong-un is often known to urge “unyielding efforts” to develop North Korea’s economy and make it “juche-based”. The word in turn invokes a nationalist spirit for North Korean independence, which in turn justifies threats of war, famine and economic stagnation. A monument called the ‘Juche Tower’ is located in Pyongyang.

GETTY The expression ‘Juche’ has an influence on the everyday lives of North Koreans

The Kim family have also brainwashed their people into believing the Korean People’s Army is the nation’s top priority with the use of the philosophy ‘Songun’. It is the “military first” policy of the North and sees Kim’s henchmen dominate even political and economic life in North Korea. Again coined by Kim II-sung in 1962, the ideology aimed to arm the entire population and fortify the state. The phrases ‘Kimilsungism’ and ‘Kimjongilism’ also explain why the country is intent on a destructive path to nuclear war.