North Korean leader Kim Jong Un acknowledged on Tuesday that his country was facing “the worst situation in its history” during a speech to thousands of right-wing members of the ruling party during a major political conference in Pyongyang.
Experts say Kim is facing the most difficult time in the last decade in power, with coronavirus isolation causing additional problems in an economy already devastated by decades of mismanagement and crippling US-led sanctions for its nuclear weapons program.
Kim made remarks during the opening speech at a meeting of Labor Party cell secretaries, the state’s Central News Agency reported.
“Improving the living standards of the population, even in the worst situation in history, where we have to overcome many unprecedented challenges, depends on the role played by the cells, the party’s grassroots organizations,” Kim said.
The president called on members to implement decisions taken at a January congress, when he promised to strengthen his nuclear deterrence in the face of US pressure and announced a new five-year development plan. The meeting came months after another political conference showed Kim’s unusual sincerity in acknowledging that her plans to improve the economy had failed.
In Tuesday’s speech, Kim also criticized the party’s core units for unspecified “deficiencies” that should be corrected immediately to ensure the organization’s “healthy and sustainable” development.
The party’s cells, which usually have between five and 30 members, are its smallest units of authority, overseeing work and life in factories and elsewhere. The network is an important tool for perpetuating the power of the Workers’ Party. The last cell secretary conference took place in 2017.
Economic setbacks have left Kim with nothing to show for his ambitious diplomacy with former US President Donald Trump, which collapsed due to disagreements over lifting sanctions in exchange for progress towards denuclearization.
For now, Pyongyang has rejected the Joe Biden administration’s negotiating proposal, saying Washington must give up its “hostile” policies sooner, and increased pressure by resuming ballistic missile tests last month after a year of suspension.