Kim Jong Un Opens Party Congress, Signals Stronger Economy

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un praised his country’s improving economy and rising regional influence as he opened the ruling party’s most significant political gathering, an event expected to shape North Korea’s domestic and foreign policy direction for the next five years while reinforcing his family’s grip on power.

The congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea, likely to last several days in Pyongyang, comes at a time when Kim has adopted a more assertive posture in regional affairs. Backed by an advancing nuclear program and closer ties with Moscow, he has intensified tensions with both Washington and Seoul.

The meeting is expected to serve as a platform for Kim to outline major political and military priorities before thousands of party delegates. Some analysts suggest he could also use the occasion to further elevate his teenage daughter widely believed to be named Kim Ju Ae, potentially signaling a fourth-generation succession within the ruling family.

North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency reported that the congress began Thursday but did not immediately detail any direct remarks by Kim regarding his nuclear program or ongoing standoffs with the United States and South Korea.

Entering his 15th year in power, Kim appears far more secure than he did at the previous congress in 2021, when the country faced severe economic strain exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the collapse of diplomacy with then–U.S. President Donald Trump.

At that time, Kim acknowledged economic shortcomings and introduced a five-year development plan through 2025 centered on self-reliance and mass mobilization. He also reaffirmed his commitment to expanding North Korea’s nuclear capabilities and unveiled an ambitious weapons development agenda.

Today, Kim projects greater confidence. Strengthened relations with Russia and China, an expanded nuclear arsenal and signs of modest economic recovery have reduced his diplomatic isolation.

In his opening remarks, Kim asserted that North Korea had achieved notable progress since 2021, pointing to economic gains and what he described as an “irreversible” enhancement of the country’s strategic position.

Kim has leveraged shifting global dynamics, particularly Russia’s war in Ukraine, to accelerate weapons development and deepen cooperation with Moscow. North Korea has reportedly supplied troops and significant quantities of munitions to support Russian President Vladimir Putin, potentially in return for economic assistance and military technology.

He has also sought closer engagement with Beijing, attending high-profile events alongside Putin and holding his first summit in six years with Chinese President Xi Jinping, moves seen as reinforcing Pyongyang’s alignment against U.S. influence.

Despite persistent sanctions and decades of economic mismanagement, some analysts believe the North’s economy has modestly rebounded, aided by renewed trade with China and arms exports to Russia. Still, the country remains heavily impoverished, and reliable economic data is difficult to obtain due to strict state controls on information.

Militarily, North Korea has advanced many of the systems Kim demanded in 2021, including solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles and tactical nuclear weapons. It successfully launched its first military reconnaissance satellite in 2023 and has claimed progress toward building a nuclear-powered submarine.

While nuclear capabilities remain central, Kim has increasingly emphasized conventional forces, unveiling new warships, air-defense systems and attack drones. Analysts expect the congress to underscore a strategy integrating nuclear and conventional forces under a fresh five-year military development plan.

North Korea has already adopted a more aggressive nuclear doctrine permitting preemptive use of nuclear weapons if leadership survival is perceived to be at risk. Greater integration of conventional and nuclear assets could blur operational lines and potentially lower the threshold for nuclear deployment, raising concerns in South Korea.

Relations with Seoul remain strained. Kim has avoided dialogue with South Korea since 2019, following the breakdown of negotiations with Trump over sanctions relief. In 2024, he abandoned the longstanding objective of peaceful reunification and labeled South Korea a permanent adversary.

The congress may further formalize that stance, possibly revising party rules to redefine inter-Korean relations as those between “two hostile states.” Although South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has expressed openness to engagement, analysts see little chance of an immediate shift in Pyongyang’s position.

Kim appears to view Seoul less as a diplomatic intermediary and more as an impediment to his broader geopolitical ambitions. At the same time, he has intensified efforts to curb the influence of South Korean pop culture within the North, reinforcing ideological discipline and dynastic authority.

Toward Washington, Kim may adopt a more calculated tone. While prioritizing ties with Moscow, he could seek to preserve space for future negotiations with the United States, potentially aiming for sanctions relief or de facto recognition of North Korea as a nuclear state. Analysts note that as the war in Ukraine evolves, Pyongyang may adjust its diplomatic calculus to maintain leverage on the global stage.