Pyongyang, December 31 (KCNA) -- The Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the great guide of our country and people, has defended the eternal vitality of socialism, the ideal and future of mankind, and vigorously led its steady development, while confirming the validity of the sacred mission and idea specified in its programme through the indomitable struggle and precious victories. Through the struggle in 2023, a crucial and vital one in the overall development of Korean-style socialism, the WPK clearly directed the future trend of advance towards the fulfillment of the five-year plan and put the overall state activities and public life on a steady upward track. This is a clear demonstration of the seasoned leadership and courageous practical ability of the WPK. Thanks to the outstanding leadership of our Party and the indomitable efforts of our people intensely loyal to it, precious ideological and spiritual asset was provided to dynamically promote the development of the state in the new era, a scientific guarantee was established to definitely set the goal and direction of the new year's struggle and accurately attain them and the mightiness and invincibility of our great state were strikingly proved by entities of the rich country with strong army. The year 2023 was a year of the most encouraging change in which the valuable successes achieved by the staunch and tireless efforts of the years following the milestone of victory set by the Eighth Congress of the Party were accumulated and their might began to be fully displayed. And this greatly encourages the patriotic enthusiasm and efforts of the Korean people aspiring for a leap forward to a new victory. As long as the militant banner of the glorious WPK is fluttering in the van, we have nothing to fear and nothing is impossible for us to do and victory is always in store for the DPRK though manifold trials are ahead of it. This is the most precious review of the year 2023 and the unshakable will of our people starting the march of the new year 2024. The historic 9th Enlarged Plenary Meeting of the 8th Central Committee of the WPK took place at the office building of the Central Committee of the WPK, the supreme general staff of the revolution, from December 26 to 30, Juche 112 (2023) to proudly review the victory of 2023 achieved by the Party and the people through their united struggle and to map out the orientation and policies for the development of the Party and state work for the new year. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, was present at the plenary meeting. When Kim Jong Un took the platform, all the participants broke into stormy cheers of "Hurrah!", extending the greatest glory to him, outstanding leader of our Party and state who ushered in a new era of great change on this land and has demonstrated the dignity and prestige of powerful Korea before the whole world with his noble mission of being responsible for the destiny of the country and people through his energetic leadership activities day and night. Attending the meeting were members of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee, members and alternate members of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee and members and alternate members of the WPK Central Committee. Present as observers were officials of departments of the Party Central Committee, leading officials of ministries, national institutions, leadership bodies of provincial level, cities, counties and major industrial establishments and chairpersons of city and county agricultural management committees who set an example in agricultural production. The presidium of the meeting was elected with members of the Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee. Upon authorization of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee, Kim Jong Un presided over the plenary meeting. The plenary meeting put the following items on its agenda: 1. On the review of the implementation of the Party and state policies in 2023 and the orientation of struggle in 2024 2. On increasing the sense of responsibility in the implementation of the socialist policy for schoolchildren 3. On the work of the Central Inspection Commission of the WPK for 2023 4. On the fulfillment of the state budget for 2023 and the draft state budget for 2024 5. On a series of measures for strengthening the leadership function of the Party at present 6. Organizational matter The plenary meeting unanimously approved the agenda items. The plenary meeting discussed the first agenda item "On the review of the implementation of the Party and state policies in 2023 and the orientation of struggle in 2024". The respected General Secretary Kim Jong Un made a historic report "On the review of the implementation of the Party and state policies in 2023". Referring to the importance and realistic significance of the struggle of 2023, full of great events and satisfactory results, in deciding the success of the work of the Eighth Central Committee of the WPK, he said in his report: This year was a very important year for our Party and people who are making a stubborn advance to implement the struggle programme set forth at the Eighth Party Congress. In this year’s struggle, decisive of the fate of the resolutions of the Party Congress, we demonstrated once again the indomitable spirit peculiar to our Party and people, who courageously carry out the revolutionary tasks which they have determined by enlisting their own strength and potentiality to the maximum, and in this course further augmented the overall national power of the country. In a nutshell, we achieved epochal successes in providing favorable conditions and a solid springboard for further accelerating the future advance in all aspects of socialist construction and the strengthening of the national power through this year’s struggle, not merely passing the third year of the implementation of the five-year plan that we had planned. Years after the Eighth Party Congress were recorded with unprecedented miracles and changes, but there had been no year full of eye-opening victories and events like this year. This is by no means an easy change. This year we had to start the advance for one year under the very difficult trials and situation. Even after the three-year international public health emergency was lifted, all sectors were subject to a lot of restrictions because of the strict anti-epidemic measures taken by the state, and efforts were made to cope with the harsh sanctions and pressure of the hostile and obstructive forces and to deal with dangerous security environment. Furthermore, the urgent problem was to solve the serious food shortage caused by the last year's poor farming. The situation raised the alternative question of whether to continue to advance towards the attainment of the third year’s goal for the implementation of the resolutions of the Eighth Party Congress or to direct everything towards overcoming the difficulties that we faced. The Party Central Committee's decision on it was, as we chosen together, an unremitting continuous advance and a vigorous struggle. On the basis of scientific analysis of the unfavorable situation at home and abroad and the essential important tasks, the WPK Central Committee, through the Sixth Plenary Meeting of the Eighth Party Central Committee, confirmed a bold goal and positive strategy, assigned them to the whole Party and forcefully promoted their implementation, thus ensuring the orientation of development and successful implementation of this year’s struggle. The report reviewed the remarkable successes made in the overall national economy. The 12 goals for the national economic development were all attained with 103 percent of grain production, 100 percent of electric power, coal and nitrogenous fertilizer, 102 percent of rolled steel, 131 percent of nonferrous metal, 109 percent of logs, 101 percent of cement and ordinary cloth, 105 percent of marine products, 106 percent of railway freight transport and 109 percent of houses under construction. And the overall economy witnessed clear production growth, including 220 percent of motor production, 208 percent of transformers, 121 percent of bearings, 140 percent of electric zinc, 121 percent of lead, 113 percent of paper, 110 percent of salt, 109 percent of cosmetics, 100 percent of flat glass and 104 percent of magnesia clinker, and plan discipline was established. Compared with the total growth of the economic sector in 2020, the previous year of the 8th Party Congress, the production of important indices largely went up in 2023 by raising the production of iron trioxide 3.5 times, pig iron 2.7 times, rolled steel 1.9 times, machine tools 5.1 times, cement 1.4 times and nitrogen fertilizer 1.3 times and the GDP grew up 1.4 times. The report estimated the over-fulfillment of the goal of grain production, the dominant height of decisive significance in the overall economic development and the guarantee of people's living, as the most precious and valuable success achieved in the economic work for 2023. The General Secretary said that the meeting for year-end account settlement and income distribution showing great enthusiasm and confidence of the officials and working people in the agricultural sector took place in succession at farms throughout the country, adding that it served as an important occasion in bringing about a great revolution in the spiritual state of the farmers and this is a genuine change of the greatest importance in the struggle for attaining the grain production goal in 2023 and for the sustained agricultural development in the future. Referring to the letters sent to the Party Central Committee by many units across the country for donating the grain they prepared with sincerity as the patriotic rice, he proposed with respect to extend thanks to those units in the name of the plenary meeting of the Party Central Committee, saying that our Party holds such simple and sincere patriotism of the agricultural workers more valuable than myriads of tons of grain. The plenary meeting fully supported his proposal. The report noted that the Kwangchon Chicken Farm was built as a standard and model of the modernization of poultry sector, modern wheat processing factories were built in Sariwon and Haeju cities and Nampho Municipality, the Hwangju-Kindung waterway project, the desalination project of Lake Kangryong and the building of the surface setups in the tideland covering thousands of hectares of area was completed and the solid foundation was laid for attaining the goal of reclaiming 300 000 hectares of tideland. All those successes are a clear proof of the validity of the rural revolutionary programme in the new era, the agricultural policy of our Party and the leadership of the Party inspiring the whole country to the struggle for the fundamental change in the agricultural production without flinching from trials and difficulties, it stressed. The report appreciated the remarkable successes made in the housing construction for the people, an important state affair our Party has given top priority to since the 8th Party Congress. The construction sector built another 10 000 flats in Hwasong District to provide a guarantee for making citizens of the capital city move into new houses on the occasion of the coming Day of the Sun and the young builders dynamically pushed ahead with the construction of more than 4 100 flats in the Sopho area, thus building a new youth monument called Jonwi Street. Our People's Army, which regards the infinite loyalty to the Party and the people and the spirit of absolutely and unconditionally implementing the orders and instructions as its lifeblood, not only conducted the housing construction in the capital city but also built more than 20 000 flats in the Komdok area for the past four years, thus forming a new mountain gorge city. They also made it possible to perfectly complete the construction of the Kangdong Greenhouse Farm by February holiday in 2024. The plan for rural housing construction this year is more than twice that of 2022, more than 58 000 flats. At least 40 cities and counties have already completed the construction and other cities and counties will finish the planned housing construction by the spring of the new year as a whole. The report noted that the key industrial sector brought about a remarkable increase in production and many readjustment and reinforcement projects were completed and other encouraging successes were made in the course of the struggle to attain the 12 major goals for national economic development. The workers of the Ryongsong Machine Complex made unprecedented innovations in wonderfully manufacturing large compressors by turning the production of machine products entrusted to them by the Party Central Committee into the process of creating the second Chollima spirit and a process of mass technological innovation. They thus dealt a telling blow to defeatism and mysticism about technique in the economic field and proved the validity and vitality of the Party's policies in a powerful practice. The Party Central Committee highly appreciated the heroic feats of the workers of the complex who successfully finished the production of large compressors before the plenary meeting by displaying the spirit of self-reliance and fortitude while manufacturing lots of custom-built equipment. Referring to the fact that the construction of the energy-saving oxygen heat blast furnace and the installation of oxygen separators with a capacity of 15 000 cubic meters per hour at the Kim Chaek Iron and Steel Complex, the project for building induction furnace at the Hwanghae Iron and Steel Complex, the construction of a vertical furnace for oxidizing roasting pellet at the Chongjin Steel Plant and the development of the Sohaeri branch mine under the Unryul Mine were completed and went into operation, the report said that 2023 is a year in which the metal industrial sector made big strides in putting the sector on a Juche and modern basis. The chemical industrial sector produced and supplied nitrogenous fertilizer before farming process and built a nutrient solution factory at the Sunchon Chemical Complex for greenhouse farms in the west coastal area. It also finished the project for establishing urea synthesis process on an expansive basis and reinforcing the cleaning process and completed the power transmission line project at the Namhung Youth Chemical Complex to provide a practical guarantee for considerably increasing the fertilizer production. It is a very significant success that the power industry has perfectly fulfilled its monthly production plan according to demand while laying a solid material and technical foundation for thermal power stations and increasing the generating efficiency of hydroelectric power stations and pushed ahead with the work to build an optimized power system on major transmission lines, thus reducing the huge loss in transmission of electricity and establishing the process of processing ultra-high-pressure towers. The torch of the socialist patriotic movement for increased coal production in the new century was kindled at the Jagang Provincial Supply Coal Mine under the Kaechon Area Coal Mining Complex and the flames of joint innovations flared up in the coal-mining industry with the movement as a firing point. This was a starting point for the overall drive for increased production of the national economy and a great strength of our Party. The report said that the economic sectors including mining, building materials, forestry, light industry, fishery and railway transport put spurs to implementing the readjustment and reinforcement strategy while carrying out the national economic plan without fail and thus make a breakthrough for definitely increasing the present and long-term production, and the IT, land and environment and urban management sectors pushed ahead with the urgent and basic projects for boosting the material and technical potentials. Reviewing 2023 as a year in which efforts to bring about new innovations and changes in the field of science and technology have been intensified, the General Secretary said that the most proud scientific and technological achievements were made in the field of space science and technology. Our scientists and technicians, having accepted the Party's strategic plan and intention as their unshakable faith, buckled down to conquering space with our wisdom and technology at any cost and brought about an eye-opening event of succeeding in the launch of reconnaissance satellites finally after repeated failures. This is a perfect demonstration of the revolutionary mettle and clever brain ability of our scientists and technicians who have surely occupied any fortress of science to meet the demands of the Party and the revolution and increase the national power of the country. This year, a great revolution has been made in the educational work for building an educational power and a talented nation. This is a proud success that is incomparable to anything. The educational sector, shouldering the responsibility for the far-reaching plan of the country, the prospect of national development and prosperity, pushed ahead in real earnest with the project for improving the educational structure, which had existed for the past several decades, to give more advanced and practical education to the students and brought about fresh and innovative, considerable change in the contents, forms and methods of education. And the Pedagogical Institute, a centre for education scientific research which reliably guarantees the development of the country's education, was newly built and the science library of Kim Il Sung University was renovated on a modern basis. More than 160 schools and kindergartens were built or renovated as model standards throughout the country, and so on, significant progress was made in consolidating the material and technical foundations of the educational sector this year. The report noted that the public health and sports sectors also made unique contributions to bringing the new change in 2023. Pharmaceutical factories, medical supplies factories and specialized facilities for preventing diseases, which are of great significance in the promotion of people's health and the preventive and curative medical care, were newly built to further consolidate the material and technical foundations of the public health sector and create a favorable environment for the economic development and the people's stable life. Our sportspersons, who took part in international games nearly four years after the outbreak of global health crisis, won many medals at the 19th Asian Games, the 22nd World Taekwon-Do Championships and the 2023 International Weightlifting Federation Grand Prix and broke the world records one after another, thus flying our national flags in the sky above the world to greatly encourage all the people in the country. The report said that all provinces have made a great leap forward in developing the regional economy and creating the people's living and high civilization by dynamically conducting the work for implementing the Party's resolutions. In South Hwanghae Province in particular, the city and county Party committees and party organizations of the agricultural sector and officials, agricultural workers and other people in the province, the masters of farming, made special efforts to carry out the plan for grain procurement by raising the strong wind of education and struggle to eradicate various evils in the past farming and enhancing the role of the group for the promotion of scientific farming. Each province has striven to build sci-tech library, school uniform factory, footwear factory and standard pharmacies and to remodel and modernize Koryo medicines factories and push ahead with the implementation of the childcare policy, true to the resolutions of plenary meetings of the Party Central Committee. Such stirring atmosphere of struggle and the style of work has been maintained in a sustained way all the year round in every province and, it resulted in the emergence of new power stations, stockbreeding farms, children's camps, outdoor theatres, universities, epidemic prevention centers, condiments factories, forest science institutes, dairy cattle farms, air clubs and many other objects that meet the long-term and immediate economic demand and provide convenience of the local people in life as well as the architectural aesthetic requirements of the new era. Consequently, the year 2023 was a year of radical change in which lots of proud creatures appeared in different regi ons, too. The General Secretary reviewed the remarkably increased politico-ideological might of the DPRK as the most significant success in the 2023 struggle. First of all, radical advance was made in the state power activities and the work of strengthening the people's power. The policy of strengthening the state nuclear force was enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic at the 9th Session of the 14th Supreme People’s Assembly held in September. This will be proudly recorded in the history of the country as it was a political event that laid a legal foundation for guaranteeing the security of our state and people forever, put the dignity and strategic position of the country on the highest level and at the same time, dealt a deadly blow at the enemy. As a result of the active legal work to further subdivide and embody the laws and regulations in conformity with the requirements of the Party’s policies and reality and to find out all spaces in the legal regulation and take relevant measures, more than 110 laws and regulations for every sector including the laws of the DPRK on auditing, irrigation, education of prodigies, distribution of production labor and public servants were newly enacted or amended and a legal guarantee was established for further consolidating our advantageous state and social system. As the method of electing deputies to the people’s assemblies at all levels was improved in a more democratic way to highlight the popular character of the Republic and further strengthen the work of the power organs, the elections of deputies to the provincial, city and county people’s assemblies held in November turned into a process of further enhancing the people’s civil consciousness and patriotic enthusiasm to be actively concerned for and participate in the state affairs. Meanwhile, the first short course for the chairpersons of Provincial, City and County People’s Committees, who are wholly responsible for the work of the people’s power organs before the Party, state and people, was conducted seriously as a work of the Party Central Committee. This served as an important occasion for further enhancing the role of our power organs. Although we did not hold many conferences this year, we started the new year with the delegates of the members of Korean Children’s Union (KCU) who attended the Ninth Congress of the KCU and had a significant time of the yearend with the participants in the Fifth National Conference of Mothers. This is the important features of this year and is of great significance in highlighting the true aim and character of our struggle. The report said that the patriotic movement of donating cereals and the movement for donating warships and other socialist patriotic movements and revolutionary mass movements were brisk amid the great enthusiasm of all the people to defend the country and revolution and that multiple rocket launchers, loading vehicles and buses named "Sonyon" (child), "Taehaksaeng Chongnyon" (university and college students), "Jikmaeng" (trade unions), "Nonggunmaeng" (union of agricultural workers), "Nyomaeng "(women's union) and "Pusasu" were presented. The large ranks of patriots with the warm mind to think first of the Party, revolution and country and to be helpful to the country to relieve it of its difficulties have grown up in the course of the vigorous mass patriotic movement. This is the greatest political success that can never be compared with anything else. Three grand military parades, which took place on the occasions of the 75th founding anniversary of the Korean People's Army, the 70th anniversary of the victory in the Fatherland Liberation War and the 75th founding anniversary of the DPRK, continuously surpassing the successive levels, and other large political and military festivals fully demonstrated before the world the dignity and prestige of the Party, state and people and the true feature of our single-minded unity. The report reviewed the fresh improvement in the work for further increasing the revolutionary appearance and fighting efficiency of our Party in 2023. In the course of struggle to implement the five-point Party-building line in the new era, the core and innovative system and methods of Party work were studied and implemented to ensure the organizational and ideological consolidation and far-sighted policy on strengthening the fighting efficiency of our Party. The work of organizing and dispatching powerful Party-member battalions throughout the Party to help Ryanggang Province in the construction of rural houses and of building up backward farms by departments of the Party Central Committee, ministries and national institutions has been organized and conducted. This is another precious stride forward in our Party work as it is a thoroughgoing embodiment of our Party’s traditional work method to make superiors help the subordinates and develop backward units together. The report said that great successes have been achieved in the struggle against the enemy and in strengthening the defence capabilities for defending the sovereignty and dignity of the country. The test-fires and launching drills of ICBM Hwasongpho-17 and Hwasongpho-18 were successfully conducted several times in the course of further accelerating the development of nuclear weapons, an important part of the national defence capability and the super-powerful war deterrent. They verified their reliability and superiority and confirmed the DPRK's long-term orientation for building up the strategic force. The DPRK conducted in an offensive way major military activities including launching drills of tactical ballistic missiles and cruise missiles to overwhelmingly counter the enemies' frantic war drills, developed unmanned reconnaissance planes and multi-purpose drones and launched a newly-built submarine to strikingly demonstrate the matchless combat readiness and development of the DPRK's armed forces. Especially the possession of space reconnaissance assets by successfully putting our first reconnaissance satellite "Malligyong-1" into orbit is a great event of making a decisive advance in carrying out the prior and important tasks for modernizing the armed forces of the DPRK set forth by the 8th Party Congress and putting the strategic strength of our state on a new high stage. The report said that the WPK has applied a proactive diplomatic strategy while maintaining the strong independent stand and principle in its external work, thus remarkably increasing the dignity and prestige of the country and reliably defending the sovereign rights of our state from the vicious moves of the U.S. and its vassal forces. In total, 2023 is a year of great turn and change both in name and reality when the DPRK left a great footprint in the glorious course of its development in the efforts to improve the national power and to enhance the prestige of the country, the General Secretary said, expressing his high respect for the heroic struggle of the Workers' Party members, sincere working people and service personnel who have dynamically pushed forward a new phase of prosperity and development with their strong redoubled efforts true to the Party's idea and leadership. He extended warm thanks to the members of the entire Party, people across the country and service personnel of the entire army who contributed to filling 2023 with successes of loyalty and patriotism, overcoming all sorts of difficulties and hardships with firm trust in our cause and indomitable spirit. He said that our Party and people have been convinced that they can certainly fulfill the five-year plan aimed at laying the foundations for the development of the national economy and advancing towards the sustained development through the past three-year stubborn struggle. At present, the revolutionary enthusiasm and fighting spirit of our people and youths are very high and all sectors are rising vigorously with the great positive changes made in their mental and moral state. This is a favorable situation that has been won since the Eighth Congress of the Party as a result of our strenuous and offensive struggle. This is the most precious and powerful asset for the future progress and development, and we can now be confident that we have overcome the most difficult and extreme points in the struggle to carry out the tasks of the Party Congress. In general, our revolution opened up an era of the comprehensive development of socialism, in which not only national defence but also all the economic and cultural sectors arose simultaneously, the capital and the provinces have changed all together and great changes have been made in the people’s ideological and mental aspects as well as in cities, villages, mountains and streams during the term of the Eighth Central Committee of the Party. The experience of the past three years is that if they work meticulously and earnestly, maintaining the spirit of braving the manifold difficulties, under the condition where the Party’s leadership system is strong and all the people’s trust in it is steadfast, they can successfully accomplish the important tasks of overcoming difficulties and developing changes. All this proves that the programme of struggle clarified by the Eighth WPK Congress is the most correct and powerful banner which vigorously pushes forward and develops our revolution despite unprecedentedly harsh difficulties, and inspires us with optimism and conviction that it will be successfully realized by two-year-long consecutive struggles in the future. The report comprehensively saw through the work of the year from a critical and developmental point of view, proceeding from the revolutionary stand of the WPK which is more concerned with defects and lessons than successes and experience for the rapider progress and development of the future, and analyzed and reviewed the defects in it in a level-headed way. The General Secretary called upon all the participants in the plenary meeting to fully discharge their responsibility and role in the work for 2024 to create a history of new victory for the overall national prosperity, with the high pride and self-confidence in the struggle of 2023 and deeply aware of the problems to be surely solved in our future work. Speeches were made on the first agenda item. Kim Tok Hun, premier of the Cabinet, Choe Ryong Hae, chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly, Ri Chol Man, department director of the C.C., WPK, Kang Sun Nam, minister of National Defence, and Jo Yong Won, secretary for Organizational Affairs of the C.C., WPK, examined and reviewed the work in their fields and suggested the measures to the plenary meeting. Leading officials in various sectors presented written speeches. The plenary meeting heard and analyzed the speeches and made relevant evaluations. Kim Jong Un made an important conclusion on the first agenda item "On the orientation of struggle in 2024". Saying that the successes achieved in the course of implementing the Party and state policies in 2023 serve as another precious asset for our advance and development, he referred to the orientation of the future struggle. We have two years in carrying out the five-year plan. In these two years we must prove with redoubled efforts that the policy of struggle decided by the Eighth Congress of the Party and the advance we have made so far are perfectly correct, and we must achieve greater successes and sum up our struggle before the Party Congress. Our general orientation of struggle is to further expand and actively apply the favorable situation and phase which we have won through a stubborn struggle, thus successfully implementing the fighting programme of the Eighth Party Congress and laying a springboard for a new advance in the future. On the basis of the successes and experience of the past three years, we should make the remaining two years an effective process of preparing for a new development of the next stage, while steadily concluding the implementation of the resolutions of the Eighth Party Congress sincerely. In particular, we should direct main efforts into solving the problems that are incomplete or a stumbling block in implementing the resolutions of the Party Congress, from next year so as to further expand the successes achieved till now and prove their worth, and turn all the planned tasks into brilliant fruitions. The year 2024 is a decisive year of confirming the victory in attaining the fighting goal set by the Eighth Party Congress by heightening the offensive spirit on all fronts of socialist construction. In other words, by the end of 2024, every sector and unit should secure an obvious practical guarantee for the fulfillment of the five-year plan. With confidence in having braved the most difficult and severe trials, we should glorify 2024 with new and significant successes through a more mounting and strenuous struggle. Noting that the primary problem is to strengthen the administrative and economic work system and order of the state, the General Secretary specified the principled issues and practical ways for the Cabinet to enliven the lifeline of the national economy and propel the purposeful economic development in line with its duty as the overall state management institution endowed by the constitution. He stressed the need for all sectors of the national economy to put spurs to the growth of production, finish the work for readjustment and reinforcement and concentrate efforts on 12 major goals by setting them in front in the new year, too. He set forth the important tasks to be fulfilled in the key industrial sectors including metal, chemistry, electric power, coal, machinery and railway transport. The conclusion defined it as our Party's orientation of development for machine-building industry at the present phase to make the Ryongsong Machine Complex, a parent body of the machine-building industry, a standard and model of modernization in the period of the Eighth Party Central Committee and, on the basis of this experience, to modernize the Taean Heavy Machine Complex, the Rakwon General Machine Enterprise and other major machine factories during the period of the new five-year economic development plan and clarified the ways for its implementation. It referred to all the tasks for more dynamically promoting the construction of the capital city and the rural housing construction, an important task started under the historic decision made at the Eighth Party Central Committee, and to the practical issues for realizing the grand long-term construction plan envisaged by the Party Central Committee. It also called on the land and environment protection and urban management sectors to steadily push forward the phased tasks specified in the five-year plan and on all the institutions and enterprises to dynamically conduct the work for coping with disaster crisis on an annual basis. The General Secretary advanced the specific tasks and ways for steadily increasing the agricultural productivity, including the work to definitely set the strategy and the step-wise goals for the development of farm machines and strongly promote the mechanization of the rural economy on the basis of survey and evaluation of the country's overall agricultural infrastructure and agro-technical capability, the work to complete the country's irrigation system and the work to vigorously hasten the reclamation of tideland without letup. He called for further stirring up the social atmosphere and climate of active support to the rural areas throughout the country, establishing the strict disciplines of food administration, and building modern wheat processing factories in various regions and improving the wheat processing technology to raise the quality of products in keeping with the increase of wheat production. The conclusion stressed the need for the light industry in 2024 to set it as the primary task for improving the quality of consumer goods and condiments and struggle for realizing it and referred to the tasks for stepping up the modernization of light industrial and regional industrial factories, developing the sericulture sector and improving the commercial, public catering and welfare service work. It also mentioned the tasks facing the fishing sector for activating the pelagic fishing, increasing the varieties and species in the fish farming and cultivation field and particularly conducting the offshore fishing on a mass scale to boost the marine production, and the measures for providing the citizens of the capital city with more civilized and affluent living conditions and environment in the period of the 8th Party Central Committee. The General Secretary stressed the need for the cultural sector, which occupies an important position in the present struggle towards the overall development of socialism and should steadily advance in the van, to take a more vigorous step forward in all aspects of cultural construction on the basis of the previous experience and lessons gained in the last three years, especially in the work of 2023. The conclusion set forth important goals and ways for accelerating the social progress and the overall prosperity of the state with the steady development of the sci-tech capability and practical vitality of attaching importance to science and technology, including the establishment of a system for purposefully setting up the pivotal and magnetic up-to-date sci-tech development plan and concentrating scientific research forces on implementing it and the integrated control over the country's development of science and technology. The conclusion called for developing the contents and methods of education in a more concrete, diverse and practical way including introducing the research-type teaching methods and research-type study methods into specialized subjects and in pedagogically ensuring the implementation of the Party's policies and thus making the year 2024 a year of greater changes in putting the country on the list of advanced states in education. It stressed the need to correctly enforce our socialist public health policies and further consolidate the material and technical foundations of the public health sector. It called upon the fields of literature and art and media, which stand at the van of the ideological and cultural front, to usher in a new heyday of their development in 2024 and thus continuously elevate the high spirit of the entire Party, the whole country and all the people. It also stressed the need to steadily expand the proud successes registered in the sports field in 2023. The conclusion indicated the policy-oriented tasks facing the people's power organs, public prosecution, public security organs and other law enforcement organs in consolidating and developing the state and social system of the DPRK, precious gains of the revolution and powerful political weapon, and the practical ways for conducting the work of working people's organizations more vigorously and powerfully. The General Secretary analyzed and evaluated the dangerous security environment in the Korean peninsula on the brink of a nuclear war and the nature of the hostile forces' military confrontation moves and clarified the important policy decision to further accelerate the radical development of the national defence capabilities. This year, too, the U.S. and its vassal forces have still perpetrated vicious anti-DPRK confrontational moves and the desperate efforts of the enemies have reached the extremes unprecedented in history in their reckless, provocative and dangerous nature. The U.S., which has caused instability and continued to aggravate the situation in the Korean peninsula, is exposing various forms of military threat to our state even at this moment when the year is falling. The U.S. has more persistently instigated the south Korean puppets and Japs, who are playing the role as the most faithful stooge and "running-dog" in carrying out its hostile policy towards our Republic, to seek to expand the bilateral and tripartite cooperation and establish an anti-DPRK cooperation system. Such moves have got more frantic this year, consonant with the interests of the south Korean puppets who are seized with security uneasiness. Openly talking about "end of regime" in the DPRK, the U.S. president cooked up the so-called "Washington Declaration", an anti-DPRK nuclear confrontation program, together with the south Korean puppets and newly organized and started the operation of the "Nuclear Consultative Group" aimed at the joint plan and execution for the use of nuclear weapons. Furthermore, he is zealously promoting the scenario for a nuclear war against the DPRK under the eyes of the world by abusing the "NCG". The U.S. has frequently met with Japs and south Korean puppets to promise long-term conspiracy and collusion against the DPRK, discuss the countermeasures and enforce annual tripartite military drills. Such provocative attitude of the U.S., which is getting frantic with the strengthening of the triangular cooperation system on the unreasonable pretext of coping with so-called "threat" from the DPRK, is driving the situation in the Korean peninsula into more unpredictable and critical conditions. What should not be overlooked is the fact that the continuous introduction into the Korean Peninsula of U.S. nuclear strategic means of all kinds, including the super-large strategic nuclear submarine that entered the southern half of Korea again in more than 40 years, the nuclear strategic bomber landed there for the first time in history, and the frequent dispatch of super-large nuclear-powered carrier task force, has turned south Korea completely into a forward military base and a nuclear arsenal of the U.S. and joint military exercises of various scales have been ceaselessly staged all the year round, setting the "highest record" in history. The number of joint military exercises staged by the U.S. military gangsters with Japs and south Korean puppets this year has doubled compared to that of last year. This clearly shows that the U.S. aims at the military confrontation with the DPRK at any cost and is getting more desperately hell-bent on the preparations for it. Only a few days ago, the Yankees summoned south Korean puppets to Washington to hold the second meeting of the "NCG" and announced to the world that they would complete the "guidelines on nuclear strategic plan and operation" and establish the "extended deterrence system" by the middle of next year and conduct nuclear operation exercises during the large-scale joint military exercises in forthcoming August. Timed to coincide with this, they brought a nuclear-powered submarine into the Korean peninsula again, making provocation even by the end of the year. The reality shows that the U.S. inveterate hostile acts against the DPRK are not only confined to rhetoric threat or demonstration purposes but have evidently evolved into a stage of execution which can lead to actual military actions and thus trigger a conflict between the armed forces of both sides. The conclusion referred to the fact that the north-south relations, which had been steadily deteriorating since the emergence of the Yoon Suk Yeol puppet regime, have been further tainted with distrust and hostility due to the anti-DPRK confrontation behavior of traitor Yoon getting evermore offensive recently and, consequently, the September 19 North-South Military Agreement, which had been playing a feeble mission of preventing armed conflict just for form's sake, was scrapped. What merits attention is that the Yoon Suk Yeol group of puppets is making a suicidal attempt to achieve the "balance of power" with the DPRK and stand in confrontation with it to the last by expanding the "UN Command", an illegal ghost body, into a multinational war organization for provoking the second Korean war. The enemies' provocative acts are getting ever more pronounced in the area along the Military Demarcation Line and the whole puppet army is being reorganized and reinforced in general while the brass hats of the puppet military have been recently replaced by extreme warmongers one after another. Such radical military moves getting more undisguised are also evidently a revelation of the sinister attempt for a war of aggression. The General Secretary said that as shown by all the facts, the confrontation nature of the U.S. and its top class stooges has not changed even in the least but is getting more undisguised and more vicious. When we pay close attention to the confrontational military acts perpetrated by the hostile forces while aggravating the dangerous security environment in the Korean peninsula every moment, the word "war" is already approaching us as a realistic entity, not as an abstract concept. The prevailing grave situation requires the DPRK to steadily step up the work for getting the overwhelming war response capability and the full and perfect military combat readiness to deter any form of provocation and action at a blow since the enemies' desperate efforts get more serious. The People’s Army should closely watch and sharply control the hourly changing acute security situation in the Korean peninsula and take more thorough military measures to firmly safeguard the security of the state while always coping with it in an overwhelming attitude. And it should rapidly respond to any possible nuclear crisis and put continuous spurs to the preparations for a great event to suppress the whole territory of south Korea by mobilizing all physical means and forces including nuclear forces in contingency. The conclusion called on the munitions industry to reliably guarantee the successful implementation of our Party's strategy for the development of the national defence by further expanding the successes made in consolidating the self-supporting foundation of the defence industry and in developing and producing arms and equipment. It stressed the need for the nuclear weapons field to lay a reliable foundation for steadily increasing the production of nuclear weapons and wage a vigorous struggle for carrying out the nuclear weapons production plan in 2024. It also set forth the main targets and militant tasks for the field of missile development and production. The conclusion clarified the task for the field of space development to launch in addition three reconnaissance satellites in 2024 on the basis of the experience gained in the successful launch and operation of the first reconnaissance satellite in 2023 and referred to the nationwide full-scale measures for dynamically accelerating the development of space science and technology. It set it as the main task facing the field of shipbuilding to enhance the underwater and surface combat strength of the navy by bringing about the second revolution of the warship-building industry and to carry out at an early date the task incomplete in attaining the major five-point goals for developing the national defence capabilities. It also stressed the need for the unmanned air industry and the detected electronic warfare sectors to develop and produce various kinds of unmanned military hardware and powerful electronic warfare means in conformity with the characteristics of modern warfare. The conclusion set forth the tasks for the militia defence force in charge of a wing of the national defence to complete the combat preparations, including the work to further enhance the operational control level of commanding officers of the Worker-Peasant Red Guards as well as the combat capabilities of its members by steadily improving the training contents and methods so as to positively cope with the enemies' combat action methods. The General Secretary made a detailed analysis of the gigantic geopolitical changes in international geo-political situation and balance of forces in 2023, the main features of present international situation and the external environment of the Korean peninsula. And he advanced the strategic and tactical policies to be held fast to in the external affairs and clarified the need to newly formulate the stands on the north-south relations and reunification policy and make a decisive policy change in the work against the enemy. The field of external affairs should actively and tactically cope with the changing and developing international situation and write a diplomatic history of the DPRK which accords with the position of a powerful country on the principle of defending the dignity of the Party, raising the national dignity and protecting the national interests. He set forth the tasks for concentrating the main efforts on the development of relations with the ruling parties of socialist countries to further expand and strengthen the external sphere of the country, further consolidating the foundation of support and solidarity to the DPRK by further developing the relations with the anti-imperialist independent countries opposed to the hegemony strategy of the U.S. and the West under ever-changing international situation and waging a dynamic anti-imperialist joint action and struggle on an international scale. We should consistently adhere to the anti-U.S. and anti-enemy struggle principle of power for power and head-on contest and pursue the high-handed and offensive toughest policy. This year we reaffirmed the unshakable will to counter the frantic nuclear war threat racket and all-out confrontation of the U.S. and its vassal forces with nukes and all-out confrontation and inflicted insurmountable security crisis and horror upon the enemies by the overwhelming exercise of the thorough war deterrent. Whatever the enemies attempt and whatever they choose, it is our unshakable principle and mode of struggle against the enemy to control by super-tough counteraction beyond it and by the exercise of powerful ability overwhelming it. The conclusion put forward the line of making a fundamental turnabout in the sector of work toward the south on the basis of a cool analysis of the bitter history of the north-south relations which has repeatedly suffered only distrust and confrontation. The Korean Peninsula is now constantly in the grip of an uncontrollable crisis due to the reckless anti-DPRK confrontation hysteria and military provocations of the U.S. and south Korean puppets. It is a well known fact that physical clash can be caused and escalated even by a slight accidental factor in the area of along the Military Demarcation Line where large armed forces of both sides are standing in confrontation with one another, and no one can deny the fact that the two states, the most hostile toward each other, are coexisting in the Korean peninsula at present. Such abnormal situation is not a random phenomenon like mutation in the light of the successive puppet regimes' extension of their policies but an inevitable result of the history of the north-south relations. For a long period spanning not just ten years but more than half a century, the idea, line and policies for national reunification laid down by our Party and the DPRK government have always roused absolute support and approval of the whole nation and sympathy of the world as they are most just, reasonable and fair. But none of them has brought about a proper fruition and the north-south relations have repeated the vicious cycle of contact and suspension, dialogue and confrontation. If there is a common point among the "policies toward the north" and "unification policies" pursued by the successive south Korean rulers, it is the "collapse of the DPRK's regime" and "unification by absorption". And it is clearly proved by the fact that the keynote of "unification under liberal democracy" has been invariably carried forward although the puppet regime has changed more than ten times so far. The puppet forces' sinister ambition to destroy our social system and regime has remained unchanged even a bit whether they advocated "democracy" or disguised themselves as "conservatism", the General Secretary said, and went on: The general conclusion drawn by our Party, looking back upon the long-standing north-south relations is that reunification can never be achieved with the ROK authorities that defined the "unification by absorption" and "unification under liberal democracy" as their state policy, which is in sharp contradiction with our line of national reunification based on one nation and one state with two systems. Even at this moment, the south Korean puppets are unhesitatingly contending that the DPRK and its people are territory and population of the ROK that should be reclaimed, and it is shamelessly specified in the constitution of the ROK that "the territory of the ROK contains the Korean peninsula and its attached islands". The reality urgently requires us to adopt a new stand on the north-south relations and the reunification policy. Now we need to admit the reality and make the relations with the south Korean puppets clearer. I think it is a mistake we should no longer make to regard the clan, who publicly defined us as the "principal enemy" and is seeking only the opportunity of "collapse of power" and "unification by absorption" in collusion with foreign forces, as the partner of reconciliation and reunification. It is not suitable to the prestige and position of the DPRK to discuss the issue of reunification with the strange clan, who is no more than a colonial stooge of the U.S., just because of the rhetorical word the fellow countrymen. South Korea at present is nothing but a hemiplegic malformation and colonial subordinate state whose politics is completely out of order, whole society tainted by Yankee culture, and defence and security totally dependent on the U.S. The north-south relations have been completely fixed into the relations between two states hostile to each other and the relations between two belligerent states, not the consanguineous or homogeneous ones any more. It can be said this is the present address that shows the relations between the north and the south today. The conclusion, lucidly looking into and recognizing the reality, stressed the need to take measures for readjusting and reforming the organizations in charge of the affairs related to the south including the United Front Department of the Party Central Committee and to fundamentally change the principle and orientation of the struggle. Solemnly declaring that if the U.S. and south Korean puppets stubbornly attempt a military confrontation with the DPRK, the latter's nuclear war deterrence will go over to a grave action without hesitation, the conclusion set forth the important tasks for the fields in charge of the affairs with enemies and foreign countries to make preparations in a foresighted way for keeping pace with the powerful military actions of the Korean People's Army to subjugate the whole territory of the south on the basis of making it a fait accompli that a war may break out on the Korean peninsula any time due to the enemies' reckless moves for invading the DPRK. Expressing belief that another great turn to be brilliantly recorded in the history of the country would be effected in the overall work of the Party and the state and in our socialist construction in 2024, too, by the indomitable fighting spirit and efforts of millions of Party members, all the people and service personnel across the country boundlessly loyal to the Party and the revolutionary cause, the General Secretary ardently called upon all of us and other people of the whole country to wage a more dynamic struggle with confidence in victory and great enthusiasm. All the participants expressed their absolute support and approval with enthusiastic cheers of "hurrah!" and warm applauses at his important conclusion, the guidelines for continuous innovation and leap forward for the accomplishment of the cause of the Party and the cause of socialism. His historic documents, which clarified the clear orientation of advance and policies of struggle for the new year for surely implementing the strategy of development of our own style through courageous and bold revolutionary practice, will serve as an immortal militant banner in powerfully leading the Korean revolution to a vigorous upsurge and bringing earlier a new era of national prosperity. The plenary meeting discussed the second agenda item "On increasing the sense of responsibility in implementing the socialist policy for schoolchildren". Kim Jong Un made a report. He made a detailed analysis of the production and supply of school uniforms, bags and shoes in 2023, going back to the situation of adopting the resolution to supply school uniforms and bags of good quality for all the schoolchildren in the country at the Fourth Plenary Meeting of the Eighth Party Central Committee and of pushing ahead with its implementation on an annual basis. He stressed once again that it is the consistent policy of the Workers' Party of Korea and the eternal national policy of the DPRK that the Party and the state supply necessities for schoolchildren in a responsible manner. He proposed the principled issues to be maintained in the production and supply of school uniforms, bags and shoes to be pushed forward by relevant organs including the Ministry of Light Industry, Party and power bodies at all levels and school uniform production units in different parts of the country as an undertaking involving the entire Party and the whole country in the new year, too, and the ways for implementing them. Saying that the work for our schoolchildren is a political work guaranteeing the rosy future of the country before it is an economic and practical work and the children's bright laugh is just a symbol of the socialist system and the image of Korean-style socialism, he earnestly requested all officials to further enhance their sense of responsibility and role in the important revolutionary work that our Party takes all pains by maintaining the feature and fulfilling the sacred duty of a genuine revolutionary. The plenary meeting discussed "On the work of the Central Inspection Commission of the Party for 2023" as the third agenda item. The plenary meeting deliberated the work of the Central Inspection Commission of the WPK for 2023 and recognized that the commission has successfully fulfilled its duty in implementing the line of building discipline of our Party and in guaranteeing the Party's work and activities financially and materially. The plenary meeting decided to form a state budget assessment group for examining and deliberating the fulfillment of the state budget for 2023 and the draft state budget for 2024 in the discussion for the fourth agenda item. The plenary meeting discussed "On a series of measures for strengthening the leadership function of the Party at present" as the fifth agenda item and unanimously approved a relevant resolution. The plenary meeting discussed the organizational matter as the sixth agenda item. Members and alternate members of the WPK Central Committee were recalled and by-elected. Sim Hong Bin, Jo Yong Dok, Jong Yong Nam, Ri Chang Gil, Han Myong Su and Myong Song Chol were by-elected as members of the C.C., WPK from alternate members. Pak Jong Chon, Pak Song Chol, Choe Jun Ho, Kim Jong Sik, Jon Il Ho, Kim Myong Hun, Jang Chang Ha, Ko Pyong Hyon, Ryu Sang Hun, Kim Chol Won and Kim Yong Hwan were by-elected directly as members of the C.C., WPK. Kim Yong Su, Jo Yong Chol, Ri Chung Gil, An Kyong Gun, Ri Sun Chol, Kim Kwang Jin, Paek Min Gwang, Jong Song Gil, Ok Chang Guk, Kuk Myong Ho, Ri Sang Do, Kim Kyong Jun, Jong Mu Rim, Kim Yong Chun, Pak Myong Ho, Kim Chol Nam, Choe Kyong Nam, Kim Jong Su, Ri Kyong Il and Kim Jong Gil were by-elected as alternate members of the C.C., WPK. Members and alternate members of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee were recalled and by-elected. Jo Chun Ryong was by-elected as a member of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee from alternate member and Pak Jong Chon and Jon Hyon Chol were by-elected directly as members of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee. Kim Chol Sam was by-elected as an alternate member of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee. Secretaries of the WPK Central Committee were dismissed and elected. Pak Jong Chon, Jo Chun Ryong and Jon Hyon Chol were elected secretaries of the WPK Central Committee. A vice-chairman and member of the Central Military Commission of the WPK were recalled and by-elected. Pak Jong Chon was by-elected as the vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission of the WPK. A vice-chairman and members of the Central Inspection Commission of the WPK were recalled and by-elected. Kim Chol Sam was by-elected as the vice-chairman of the Central Inspection Commission of the WPK and Choe Jun Ho and Kim Chol Won as its members. Department directors of the WPK Central Committee were dismissed and appointed. Kim Jae Ryong, Jon Hyon Chol, Ju Chang Il, Kim Chol Sam and Ju Chol Gyu were appointed as department directors of the C.C., WPK. Chief secretaries of the provincial Party committees were dismissed and appointed. Kim Yong Hwan was appointed as the chief secretary of the North Hamgyong Provincial Committee of the WPK and Pak Song Chol as the chief secretary of the North Phyongan Provincial Committee of the WPK. Some senior officials in government organs and major posts were dismissed and appointed. Ri Chol Man was appointed as vice-premier of the Cabinet and chairman of the Agricultural Commission, Kim Myong Hun as vice-premier of the Cabinet, Kim Kyong Jun as minister of Land and Environment Protection, Kuk Myong Ho as minister of Railways, Jong Mu Rim as minister of Public Health, Ri Sang Do as minister of Mining Industry, Ri Chung Gil as chairman of the State Commission of Science and Technology, Kim Chol Won as director of the Central Public Prosecutors Office, Jon Il Ho as president of Kim Jong Un University of National Defence and Ko Pyong Hyon as chairman of the Second Economy Commission. The plenary meeting held panel study and consultative meetings for two days for drafting a thorough and correct plan for carrying out the tasks for the new year on the basis of the idea and spirit of the important conclusion made by the General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea. Members of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee guided the panel study and consultative meetings. The study and consultative meetings studied and discussed in an enterprising way the issues of further consolidating and expanding the achievements made in the struggle in 2023 for implementing the resolutions of the Eighth Congress of the Party and raised innovative and constructive opinions. The 18th Meeting of the Political Bureau of the 8th Central Committee of the WPK was convened on Dec. 30. The Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee examined the opinions integrated at the panel study and consultative meetings and decided to amend and supplement the draft resolution to submit it to the plenary meeting. It also decided to examine the implementation of the state budget for 2023 and the draft state budget for 2024 deliberated by the state budget assessment group and to report them to the plenary meeting. The Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee decided to present the major goals to the plenary meeting on the basis of the view that it is important for ensuring the growth of the whole economy while consolidating and maintaining the success of 2023 to put forward the 12 major goals of key importance in developing the economy and improving the people's living standard and direct efforts to them in the new year, too. Kim Tok Hun, premier of the Cabinet, reported the results of the meeting of the Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee. The plenary meeting unanimously adopted a resolution "On carrying through the year 2024 tasks for the five-year plan set forth by the Eighth Party Congress". The plenary meeting finally examined the fulfillment of the state budget for 2023 and the draft state budget for 2024 and approved submitting it to the 10th Session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly. Kim Jong Un affirmed that the historic December Plenary Meeting decided on the direction of the struggle for 2024 in a more prudent manner and adopted relevant resolutions in conformity with the requirements of the revolution and the objective and subjective situation, thus providing a powerful weapon of struggle for making the overall development period of Korean-style socialism have a firm aspiration and achieving greater successes by bringing about a dynamic upsurge in the revolution. Noting that it is the main idea and main spirit of the current plenary meeting to more dynamically struggle for attaining the goals set forth by the 8th Party Congress in unity with patriotism, the General Secretary stressed that we should carry forward to 2024 the 2023 glory of achieving the most valuable victory and successes with redoubled courage and vigor, full of confidence in our strength and our cause, together with the great people. When all the Party organizations and officials faithfully fulfill the sacred mission and duty they have assumed before the state and people, rallied close around the Party Central Committee, the manifold ordeals and difficulties will be overcome and our cause of dynamically advancing for realizing the grand ideal and goal will be further accelerated, he noted. Taking the oath solemnly on behalf of the Party Central Committee that he would always be faithful to the revolutionary idea and cause of President Kim Il Sung and Chairman Kim Jong Il, he expressed belief that the high enthusiasm of all the participants ahead of the new struggle in 2024 would surely lead to bold practice and proud fruition. The 2023 December Plenary Meeting of the WPK Central Committee successfully completed its historic and responsible discussion amid the high political consciousness and surging enthusiasm of all participants to demonstrate to the whole world the invincibility of the Korean revolution advancing with great ambition and ideal and dynamically guide the successful implementation of the programme of struggle of our Party. The members of the leadership body of the Party Central Committee, who stood at the starting point of the important struggle to provide a sure guarantee for the fulfillment of the five-year plan, take a firm pledge to fulfill their responsible mission entrusted by the Party and the people by laying more favorable foundations and circumstances for consolidating and further developing the phase of overall development of socialist construction during the term of the 8th Party Central Committee, true to the leadership of the General Secretary of our great Party. The 9th Plenary Meeting of the 8th WPK Central Committee that will shine along with 2023, the great year of victory, will be recorded long in the history of our Party as a significant political event that redoubled the faith and optimism in the truth of our idea and our cause and its bright future, proved through trials and miracles, and fully demonstrated the unbreakable and proud might of our state.