NewsTracker Answers for week of May 23, 2022

Q: Impoverished, malnourished and unvaccinated, North Korea is reporting its “first” outbreak of covid-19 and said last week that 1.5 million of its people were suffering from the “fever.” Where is North Korea?

Circle the area on this map


Q: The United Nations says 40 percent of North Korea’s 25 million people are considered malnourished. What family has ruled the nation for more than 75 years?

A. Kim

B. Mao

C. Yoon

D. Xi


A. Kim Jong-un is the current Supreme Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. He took over after the 2011 death of his father Kim Jong-il, who had succeeded his father Kim Il-sung in 1994. Kim Il-sung was placed in power in 1945 by the Soviet Union while it occupied the northern portion of the Korean Peninsula.


Q: Most hospitals in North Korea are poorly equipped and lack a reliable supply of electricity and heating – except for certain hospitals serving the nation’s elite in the capital city of ...

A. Hanoi

B. Pyongyang

C. Seoul

D. Yangon


B. Pyongyang is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution." It has a population of about 3.2 million. It is about 121 miles northeast of South Korea’s capital of Seoul, with a population of 9.9 million.


Q: While his totalitarian regime has ignored outside offers of covid vaccines and other medical aid, Kim Jong-un criticized officials for their “immature” responses to the epidemic. While it says it is now turning out medicines and medical equipment “in a lightning way,” the government has spent most of its money on what?

A. Food production

B. Goods for the elite

C. Military expenses

D. Export products


C. North Korea has the fourth largest standing army behind China, India and the United States – the three most populous nations. And, its combined active, reserve and paramilitary forces are the largest in the world. It also has spent billions to produce nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles that could reach the United States.


Q: Kim ordered his government to learn from the “success” of its top ally in battling covid-19. What is North Korea’s biggest trading partner and benefactor?

A. China

B. Japan

C. Russia

D. South Korea


A. China has adopted a “zero-covid” policy to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. It has has used strict lockdowns, mass testing and vaccinations to keep cases low throughout the pandemic. But, North Korea lacks covid tests, anti-viral medicines and vaccines. Imposing tough lockdowns could severely worsen the country’s hunger problem.