The 3rd Plenary Meeting of the 8th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) opened on Tuesday amid unusual concern and expectations of all the Party members and all the people of the country keeping high fighting spirit braving manifold difficulties in their advance along the path indicated by the historic 8th Congress of the Party.

The Central Committee of the WPK has convened the plenary meeting for the mid-term summing up of the implementation of major policies of the Party and the state for 2021 assigned at the 2nd Plenary Meeting of the 8th Central Committee of the WPK, for taking measures to solve the pending issues urgent for improving the economic work and the people's living and for the discussion of and decision on issues for powerfully and correctly pushing forward crucial state work under the prevailing situation.

The respected Comrade Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK, guided the plenary meeting.

The moment Kim Jong Un appeared at the meeting hall to mount the platform together with members of the Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee, all the participants broke into enthusiastic cheers for the respected General Secretary wisely leading the historical struggle of our Party and people toward the new victory of socialist construction with his outstanding ideology and theory and energetic leadership activities.

Besides the members of the Party central leadership organ, officials of the departments of the Party Central Committee, officials of ministries, national institutions and armed forces organs and leading officials of the province-level guidance organs, cities, counties and complexes were present there as observers.

Kim Jong Un presided over the plenary meeting upon authorization of the Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee.

The General Secretary said with high appreciation that positive achievements have been made in the Party and the state work and the revolutionary zeal of our people have been boosted up to now since the whole Party confirmed and started implementing the first-year plan for implementing the decisions of the Party congress.

The subjective and objective conditions and environment for the revolutionary struggle have become worse upon entering this year but the country's economy has shown improvement as a whole as evidenced by the implementation of the first half-yearly plan for total industrial output at 144 percent, 25 percent increase as against the same period last year, and huge growth made in terms of actual amount of goods, he said.

He said that a series of deviations were revealed in the course of carrying out the state plan and policy tasks owing to several obstacles and difficulties facing us at present.

Saying that in particular, the people's food situation is now getting tense as the agricultural sector failed to fulfill its grain production plan due to the damage by typhoon last year, he stressed that the plenary meeting should take a positive measure for settling the problem.

Noting that now is high time to give full play to the indomitable revolutionary spirit and the fighting traits of self-reliance and fortitude, the vital power peculiar to the Korean revolution, he said that it is the main purport of convening the plenary meeting to take thorough measures for fulfilling this year's policy tasks without fail by further arousing the high fighting spirit of the whole Party and all the people.

He suggested agenda items to be taken up for discussion at the plenary meeting.

Put as major agenda items were the issue of reviewing the execution of major state policies for the first half of the year and taking measures, the issue of directing all efforts to farming this year, the issue of thoroughly coping with the protracted nature of the emergency anti-epidemic situation, the issue of analyzing the current international situation and our Party's corresponding direction, the issue of stabilizing and improving the people's living standard and the issue of improving and strengthening the Party's childcare policy and the organizational issue.

Members of the Central Committee of the Party decided on the agenda items with unanimous approval.

The plenary meeting discussed the first agenda item.

Reported to the meeting were actual data on the execution of major policy tasks for the first half of the year and issues that require urgent Party and state measures.

Kim Tok Hun, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the WPK and premier of the Cabinet, made a detailed report on the execution of the policy tasks for the economic field for this year, Pak Jong Chon, chief of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army, a detailed report on the work of the People's Army, and Kim Jae Ryong, department director of the Central Committee of the Party, a detailed report on the campaign against anti-socialist and non-socialist practices.

The General Secretary made an important concluding speech on matters brought up for discussion on the first agenda item.

In the concluding speech, he analyzed and reviewed in detail the work of every sector and unit of the national economy for the first half of the year and set forth the tasks and ways for sectors to bring about substantial changes and development-oriented results without fail and provide a firm guarantee for carrying out the five-year plan.

He called for ensuring responsible economic operation and commanding and carrying out this year's economic plan without fail in complete reliance on the advanced science and technology while expanding achievements and experience gained in the key industrial sectors like metal, chemistry, electricity, coal and construction and building materials and in all other sectors like light industry, fishery, city management and land and environment protection and overcoming deviations and shortcomings.

He emphasized that different sectors of cultural construction including education, public health and art and literature should innovatively organize and develop their work in line with the realistic conditions and policy requirements and thus further display the advantages of socialist system.

He clarified the principled problems which should be regarded as guidelines in waging in a more offensive and efficient way the struggle against anti-socialist and non-socialist practices on which hinge the future of Korean-style socialism and the destiny of the people.

The General Secretary indicated the important tasks arising in further developing the Party work at present, saying that the innovation and strengthening of the Party work would lead to consolidating the might of the Party and the revolutionary ranks as firm as a rock and to firmly ensuring the Party's political leadership over the revolution and construction.

Finishing the concluding speech on the first agenda item, he stressed that all the sectors and units should be fully aware of their sacred responsibility and duty before the Party and revolution and make redoubled efforts to successfully attain the fighting goals for this year.

There was a discussion of the second agenda item at the plenary meeting.

Ri Chol Man, department director of the Party Central Committee, made a detailed report on the actual state of the farm work up to present.

The respected General Secretary said having a good crop is a militant task our Party and state must fulfill as a top priority issue to provide the people with a stable life and successfully step up socialist construction, adding that it is essential for the whole Party and state to concentrate on farming from a lesson of last year's farming and under this year's unfavorable conditions.

He stressed the need for agricultural and meteorological observation fields to take measures to minimize natural disaster in close cooperation with each other and for every sector to powerfully support them after setting it as a key issue for attaining this year's goal of grain production to overcome affection by disastrous weather getting ever more serious.

The plenary meeting discussed as the third agenda item the issue of getting thoroughly prepared for the emergency anti-epidemic situation assuming prolonged nature.

The respected General Secretary listened to the report on the analysis of the present situation of the state emergency anti-epidemic work and clarified the urgent tasks that have to be carried out by the state at any cost now that the world health crisis is becoming worse and worse due to the malignant virus.

Saying that the prolonged emergency anti-epidemic situation means the prolonged maximum awareness and prolonged observation of the strong discipline in the state emergency anti-epidemic work and also the prolonged struggle for keeping afloat the overall economy and for providing food, clothing and housing for the people, he set forth the tasks for the state to maintain perfect anti-epidemic state under the present condition and for the economic guidance organs to meticulously organize the economic work to cope with the unfavorable condition of the emergency anti-epidemic work.

Specially emphasizing that all the Party organizations and power organs should direct primary efforts to the work of fully and timely meeting what is needed by the people in their living, he took revolutionary measures for increasing production in the fields directly linked with the people's living including the light industry and the fishery.

The participants are seriously discussing the issues with a single determination to carry out the tasks for their fields and units at any cost, bearing deep in mind the contents of the important concluding speech made by the respected General Secretary.

The plenary meeting continues.

Political News Team