North Korea is emphasizing the role of its officials and encouraging achievements in the latter half of the year as it prepares for the 9th Workers’ Party Congress scheduled for the end of this year or early next year.
The Workers’ Party’s official newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, published a front-page article on Wednesday titled, Officials Should Prove Their Party Loyalty and Revolutionary Spirit Through Unconditional Implementation of Party Decisions and Evaluate Their Worth. The newspaper stressed that an official’s value cannot be assessed if they fail to implement party decisions, putting pressure on officials to deliver tangible results.
On page 3, another article headlined, Party Officials Should Take Full Responsibility for Production in Their Units, urged officials to become skilled organizers and resolute practitioners who flawlessly execute all tasks at the level demanded by the party.
Page 2 reported that Pak In-chol, Chairman of the Supreme People’s Assembly, returned on Tuesday after attending the Sixth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament in Geneva, Switzerland. During the conference, Pak met with Russian representatives and issued a statement condemning imperialism, but did not meet with South Korean or Chinese delegates.
The same page also reported that national commendations were awarded to individuals such as Ri Kum-suk, who led North Korea’s women’s soccer teams to victory in the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Under-20 (U-20) and Under-17 (U-17) World Cup tournaments last year.
Page 4 featured an article titled, Let’s Set True Life Goals in Our Youth, encouraging the younger generation to emulate the spirit of their elders by working harder and dedicating themselves to their country and people. The newspaper advised young people that youth can only shine through self-sacrifice and heroic struggle.
Page 5 reported on the opening of the 2025 National Furniture and Finishing Materials Science and Technology Achievement Exhibition at the Sci-Tech Complex on Tuesday. According to the newspaper, this exhibition, themed Advancing Domestic Production and Quality Improvement, aims to contribute to the construction of 50,000 housing units in Pyongyang and the implementation of the party’s local development policies.
Page 6 noted that the U.S. government recently demanded that Brazil halt imports of Russian crude oil during tariff negotiations. The Brazilian government responded by stating that it opposes using economic issues as tools for achieving geopolitical objectives.