North Korea will hold its Ninth Congress of the Workers' Party in late February in Pyongyang, the first since 2021. Leader Kim Jong-un is expected to announce policies on the economy, diplomacy, and defense during the rare meeting. The decision was unanimously approved at a political bureau meeting.
North Korea's state media, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), reported on February 8 that the Political Bureau of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) Central Committee unanimously decided at a meeting the previous day to convene the Ninth Congress of the WPK in late February 2026 in Pyongyang. The meeting was presided over by party secretary Jo Yong-won under the guidance of leader Kim Jong-un, where approvals were made on delegate qualifications, the composition of the presidium, platform, secretariat, and schedule.
While expressing appreciation for the preparations, "Kim Jong Un ... clarified the principled issues and detailed tasks for the successful holding of the congress," KCNA said. This will be the third congress under Kim's leadership, who assumed power in late 2011 and revived the party congress after a 30-year hiatus to stabilize governance through traditional party-led rule.
The previous eighth congress in 2021 lasted eight days, during which Kim was named party general secretary, succeeding his predecessors' title, and the North pledged to develop advanced weapons like nuclear submarines and hypersonic missiles. This year's congress is expected to focus on foreign policy, potentially shaping Pyongyang's responses to overtures from Washington and Seoul for talks. While North Korea may keep the door open for dialogue with the U.S., it is unlikely to engage with Seoul after defining inter-Korean relations as those between hostile states.
Kim is widely expected to unveil new weapons development plans, following his late-month statement that "the next-stage plans for further bolstering up the country's nuclear deterrent" would be clarified at the ninth congress. Reports indicate preparations for a military parade to mark the event, which will be scrutinized for signs of new weapon systems. The congress, the regime's highest decision-making body, typically opens with a speech by Kim, followed by assessments of prior policies and adoption of new ones.
