The respondents -- 20 women and 30 men -- included ruling party officials, security officers, farmers and homemakers. They ranged in age from 24 to 64 and their educational background varied from middle school graduates to university degree holders.

   They lived across the nation, from Ryanggang Province on the northern border with China to the capital Pyongyang to Gangwon Province on the southern border with South Korea.

   A mid-career soldier was quoted as saying nuclear weapons are "the devil's weapons" and "will lead to our extinction."

   A middle-aged woman called the program "crazy" and accused the leaders of thinking only about themselves when the people are struggling. In North Korea, it is rare to speak out against leader Kim Jong-un as he and his father and grandfather -- former leaders of the regime -- have established a cult of personality around them.

   Still, seven respondents expressed a positive attitude toward the nuclear weapons program, saying it has helped protect the regime from attacks from powerful nations such as the US and China.

   North Korea is believed to be only months away from mastering the capability to strike the US mainland with a nuclear-tipped missile.

   Last year it tested three intercontinental ballistic missiles and its sixth and most powerful nuclear weapon, inviting what has been billed as the harshest ever international sanctions against the regime. (Yonhap)