North Korea has yet to announce the schedule for the 9th Workers’ Party Congress, which will set the country’s governance direction for the next five years. The government had anticipated the congress to occur in January or February, but as of Friday, no specific developments have been detected.
A Unification Ministry official, in a meeting with reporters the previous day, stated that there’s a possibility it could be held in February, but added that North Korea hasn’t shown any significant movements yet. The government is also considering the possibility that North Korea might hold the congress in March, depending on the circumstances.
The party congress is the most authoritative decision-making body established during Kim Il Sung’s leadership. During Kim Jong Il’s tenure, when the country operated under a state of emergency centered on the National Defense Commission rather than the party—due to the Arduous March and nuclear development—the party congress was not convened even once.
After assuming power in 2011, Kim Jong Un restored party-centered state governance and held the 7th party congress in 2016. This marked the first congress in 36 years since the 6th congress in 1980. North Korea held the 8th party congress in 2021 and confirmed the cycle for future congresses to be once every five years.
The party congress is also a crucial event that determines North Korea’s medium-term policies and strategies. It announces five-year plans across various sectors, including defense, economy, and diplomacy, although plans in highly variable areas like foreign policy may not always adhere to a five-year framework.
Last June, North Korea decided to convene the 9th party congress during a plenary meeting of the Central Committee. In a subsequent December plenary meeting, they revealed that important decisions regarding the party congress had been made, but specific agendas and schedules have not yet been disclosed.
Based on the previous two instances since Kim’s rise to power, it appears that the specific schedule and agenda will be finalized through a Politburo meeting chaired by Kim. Unlike the plenary session, which gathers over 250 officials from the Central Committee, the Politburo meeting consists of only 20 to 25 senior officials. According to North Korean party regulations, the Politburo holds the highest authority among permanent decision-making bodies.
Therefore, the timing of the 9th party congress may be gauged by whether a Politburo meeting occurs. Kim abruptly halted his vigorous public activities after a week starting January 1, leading to speculation that he may have begun preparations for a Politburo meeting.
The reporting style of North Korean media also serves as an indicator for estimating the timing of the party congress. As the congress approaches, it is expected that state-run media outlets like Rodong Sinmun and the Korean Central News Agency will ramp up mobilization-style propaganda, emphasizing preparations for the party congress or let’s celebrate the congress with accomplishments.
During the previous 8th party congress, North Korea did not adopt a decision document containing the conclusions of the congress. At that time, Rodong Sinmun announced that the decision document from the 8th congress would be adopted five years later, raising interest in how North Korea will disclose this information at the upcoming congress.
Some analysts speculate that North Korea may have deliberately postponed the adoption and disclosure of the decision document due to the challenges it faced from the breakdown of denuclearization talks and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic when it held the congress. Consequently, they suggest that this time, North Korea might not disclose any related content and only reveal the conclusions of the 9th party congress.
From South Korea’s perspective, the most noteworthy aspect is North Korea’s new foreign policy direction. Over the past five years, North Korea has touted its close ties with Russia as its greatest diplomatic achievement. Attention is now focused on whether it will continue this trajectory or present a new message aimed at dialogue and negotiations with the U.S. and South Korea during the upcoming congress.
Depending on the foreign policy direction North Korea chooses, the South Korean government’s plans regarding potential developments—such as President Donald Trump’s visit to China in April and possible inter-Korean and U.S.-North Korea contacts—are expected to become clearer.