The Charter of the Workers' Party of Korea States "Face down Military Threats with Strong Military Power"

[경향신문]

North Korea amended the Charter of the Workers’ Party of Korea for the first time in five years and stated the “strengthening of military power.” North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (pictured) demanded the U.S. Joe Biden administration, which will soon be inaugurated, to “withdraw hostile policies” and stressed the need for South Korea to “implement the inter-Korean agreement and suspend hostile activities.”

On January 10, the Rodong Sinmun reported that the preamble of the party’s charter, which was revised in the eighth party congress the previous day “included articles on efforts to strengthen the military power of the Republic with political ideology and military technology.” The North Korean state newspaper also conveyed that the party charter clearly stipulated plans “to face down basic military threats with strong military power and to defend the stable and peaceful environment of the Korean Peninsula,” when mentioning the nation’s struggle for unification. This was the first time that North Korea stated the strengthening of its military as a goal, showing the North’s determination to pursue advances in nuclear weapons as its main direction for state affairs.

Earlier in a general report of state affairs that lasted for three days on January 5-7, Chairman Kim mentioned the North’s policies on the South and the U.S. and tossed the ball, saying that progress in the relationship with these countries depended on changes in attitude from the South and the U.S. The North Korean leader said, “We will continue to deal with the U.S. based on the principle of hardline for hardline, good for good,” and urged the U.S. to withdraw its hostile policies. With U.S. president-elect Joe Biden in mind, Kim Jong-un said, “Whoever enters office in the U.S., the true nature of the U.S. and its policy on North Korea will never change,” and called the U.S. its “arch-enemy.” He also said, “We will further expand and develop our relations with socialist countries,” and hinted at plans to strengthen ties with China and Russia.

As for South Korea, Chairman Kim stressed the implementation of the inter-Korean agreement and demanded the South to suspend its joint military exercise with the U.S. and to stop introducing high-tech weapons. Kim Jong-un said, “We will respond as much as the South responds to our legitimate request, as much as it moves to implement the inter-Korean agreement.” At the same time, he also said, “We may return to a new starting point for peace and prosperity as on that spring day three years ago,” and left the door open for better relations depending on the attitude of the South.

Chairman Kim released plans to develop nuclear submarines and stressed his determination to improve the accuracy of inter-continental ballistic missiles, develop tactical nuclear weapons and hypersonic weapons, and produce extra-large nuclear warheads. He practically announced plans to keep strengthening its self-defense capability against the U.S.

In the latest party congress, North Korea released a five-year national economic development plan as an extension of its existing policy to pursue a self-sufficient economy and economic revival on its own. As for the tourism industry, the North reaffirmed plans to independently develop the Mount Kumgang tourist zone.

North Korea abolished the party’s Executive Policy Council after five years since the seventh party congress in 2016 and re-established the Secretariat. It also strengthened the authority of the party’s Central Committee and the Political Bureau Presidium (standing committee) and enhanced flexibility in the operation of the party’s Central Military Commission. The party congress continued for six days until January 10, and the North is expected to soon adopt a report on the decisions concerning state affairs along with the results of an election for the party’s Central Committee.