Rodong Sinmun Monday says this in a bylined article.

It goes on:

Thanks to the outstanding and tested leadership of President Kim Il Sung high-level political talks took place between the north and the south of Korea and they culminated in the publication of the July 4 joint statement on July 4, Juche 61 (1972) whose keynote is the three principles of national reunification.

The principles have been fully supported by the fellow countrymen as a great programme common to the nation for several decades and powerfully demonstrated their validity and vitality.

The historic June 15 joint declaration and its action program October 4 declaration, results of Kim Jong Il's noble patriotic intention and energetic leadership, are strictly based on the above-said principles.

The said declarations brought about signal achievements in the inter-Korean relations and the movement for national reunification.

The history and present reality prove that the above-said principles alone serve as the most just and realistic programme of struggle common to the nation reflecting the desire of the Koreans for reunification and the requirements for the development of the reunification movement in Korea and they are a fundamental cornerstone for national reunification which all Koreans should always hold aloft and the adherence to them is the main orientation for the development of the inter-Korean relations.

The above-said principles will always remain vital and the struggle of the Korean nation for accomplishing the June 15 cause is sure to triumph, concludes the article.